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ALASKA : Restraining Order & Order of Protection Information

TYPES OF PROTECTIVE ORDERS
BENEFITS
COSTS
VIOLATIONS

Domestic violence, according to Alaska code, can entail any of the following committed against a household member:

• Assault
• Stalking
• Terroristic threatening (Falsely reporting a circumstance that places you in fear that someone has been injured)
  
• Interference with reporting of domestic violence
  
• Arson or criminal mischief
  
• Custodial interference
  
• Sexual offenses
  
• Harassment
  
• Kidnapping
  
• Burglary and criminal trespass
  
• Robbery, extortion, or coercion
  
• Violating a protective order
  
• Murder

Any person who is a victim of domestic violence by a household member is eligible for a protective order. Household members may be adults or minors, who:

• married, or were formerly married;
  
• live together (whether current or past);
  
• are dating or who have dated;
  
• have, at any time, had a sexual relationship;
  
• are related to each other, such as child, parent, grandchild, brother, sister, grandparent, uncle, first cousin, or other relative;
  
• are related or formerly related by marriage (including step-parents and step-children);
  
• have a child from the relationship whether or not they have been married or have lived together;
  
• is a minor child of a person in a relationship described above.

Note: In Alaska, you may apply for a PFA against a current or former same-sex partner.

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Types of protective orders:

There are three types of civil protective orders available to victims of domestic violence in Alaska. Each type of order provides a different type of protection, and how you get protection is different for each type of order.

Emergency 72-Hour Protective Order

Emergency Orders are designed to protect you from immediate danger. You may get one when a judge is unavailable to give you a hearing for a temporary order.

Ex Parte 20-Day Protective Order

20-Day orders are designed to give you protection if the judge thinks you are in danger of being harmed before you have your hearing for a Regular Protective order.

Regular Protective Order

This order generally lasts for one year, but the provision prohibiting your abuser from threatening to commit or committing acts of domestic violence, stalking, or harassment against you, remains in effect indefinitely unless the court says otherwise.

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Benefits:

Each type of order offers different categories of protection. The order may:

• order your abuser not to commit or threaten to commit domestic violence, stalking, or harassment (this part of an order is the only part that can remain in effect indefinitely unless dissolved by further order of the court);
  
• order your abuser not to call, contact, or communicate with you in any way, directly or indirectly;
  
• give you the sole use of your house and vehicle, even if his name is on the rental agreement or he has some type of ownership interest in the residence;
  
• tell your abuser to stay away from your house, school or work;
  
• order your abuser not to get into your vehicle;
  
• order your abuser not to have or use a deadly weapon or firearm;
  
• request that a peace officer go with you to your house to make sure that you get your house, vehicle or personal things back safely;
  
• award you temporary custody of your children;
  
• prohibit your abuser from taking controlled substances;
  
• order your abuser to go to alcohol or drug treatment at your request;
  
• require your abuser to pay child support;
  
• require your abuser to pay you back for medical expenses, counseling, shelter stay, and repair or replacement of damaged property;
  
• require your abuser to pay for costs and fees in obtaining the protective order; order the perpetrator to attend a batterers intervention program; and
  
• anything else the court determines is needed to protect you or your household members from further violence.

Judges will order those provisions relevant to the facts of your specific case. Therefore it is important that the judge hear all pertinent details of your case, as well as any concerns you have of potential threats from your abuser.

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Costs:

There is no fee for filing a protective order in Alaska. If you choose, you can represent yourself pro se (without a lawyer) throughout the process of seeking a protective order. Although you do not need legal counsel to file, it may be to your advantage to seek representation, especially if your abuser has obtained a lawyer, and/or when child custody issues are at stake.

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Violations:

Call the police immediately if you believe your protection order has been violated. Any failure to observe all provisions of the order constitutes a violation on the part of your abuser. In such an instance, call the police immediately; tell them that you have an order and that your abuser is in violation of it. Police should typically make an arrest if there has been a violation, and they can do so without a warrant if the violation was reported within 12 hours of its occurrence. If no arrest is made, the officer must put in writing the reasons why.

It is beneficial to take down the name and badge number of the officer who arrives on scene, so that you may follow up on your case. Even if your abuser is not arrested, filling out a police report is important. Legal documentation of all violations provides a stronger case for an extension or modification of your existing order.

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