Restraining order as a result of threatening harassment
A restraining order is a judicial order that states that a certain person will stay a certain distance from another person. This order is not limited to a certain type of person, but on the contrary, it may be issued within the framework of family relationships, including between spouses and even between parents and children.
In quite a few divorce proceedings, one of the parties goes to court to obtain such an order, especially in cases of domestic violence.
In the review below, we will explain exactly the essence of the procedure and the meaning of the aforementioned order.
What is threatening harassment?
Threatening harassment is harassment of a person towards another person, carried out in any way, including threats, invasion of privacy, spying, tracking of one’s movements, damage to one’s property, good name, and any other way in which there is harassment.
In Israel, there is a law for the prevention of threatening harassment, 5762-2001, which is intended to protect people from harm to their peace of life, privacy, and body, from those who engage in harassment against them, which may be interpreted as threatening.
Section 4 of the Law for the Prevention of Threatening Harassment states:
“If the court finds that a person has engaged in threatening harassment… and if it finds that the threatening harassment was committed in circumstances where there is a fear of actual harm to the peace of another person’s life or of continued harm as aforesaid, it may also order that person by order to refrain from committing an act. If the court finds that a person has behaved or harmed another, it may order that person by order to refrain from committing an act.”
The person’s behavior provides reasonable grounds to believe that he poses a real physical danger to another person or that he is likely to commit a sexual offense against him. Immediately prior to submitting the application, he physically harmed another person, committed a sexual offense against another person, or unlawfully imprisoned another person.
In addition, it was determined that the court may include a prohibition on being within a certain distance of the victim’s residential apartment, vehicle, place of work or place of study, or another place where the victim is accustomed to being regularly present.
When the court determines that threatening harassment has indeed occurred, it may issue a restraining order against a person and even beyond that.
A restraining order can include instructions instructing a specific person to stay away, at a distance determined by the court, from another person, from their place of residence, their place of work, their place of study, and any other place depending on the circumstances of the case.
In addition, a restraining order can also include a provision prohibiting a person from carrying a weapon.
Examples of realistic cases in which restraining orders should be issued:
- A restraining order was imposed against an adult man who attacked his parents and even stole money from their wallet.
- A restraining order was imposed against an ex-partner, who followed and even harassed his former partner and her acquaintances by phone.
- A restraining order was imposed against a minor who, in various outbursts of rage, destroyed his parents’ property, leading to concerns that he might resort to deadly violence in the future.
It should be noted that since this is a minor, this also requires intervention from a social worker, who will arrange for him to be placed in an alternative section.
A restraining order was imposed against a woman’s ex-husband because he attacked his children and even threatened to harm them on various occasions. These are all general examples of cases in which restraining orders should be issued.
The procedure for obtaining a restraining order
The application for a restraining order can be filed with the Magistrate’s Court, and if it concerns a family member, it can also be filed with the Family Court and even with various types of religious courts. Likewise, when it concerns a request filed against a minor, it can also be filed with the Juvenile Court.
Which means that the courts described have equivalent authority in the cases in question.
When it comes to a request filed by parents against their children, it can be filed both in the Magistrate’s Court and in the Family and Youth Court.
When a restraining order is sought from parents against their minor child, a social worker and the assistance department of the Home Family Law. The order can be requested by the victim himself, the Attorney General, a prosecutor, and when it concerns a minor, even by the social worker.
In exceptional cases, when a petition for a restraining order is filed for immediate protection, the applicant for the order may request and have the request for a restraining order heard even ex parte.
To the extent that the order is issued unilaterally, a hearing will be held in the presence of both parties, within seven days.
In most cases, the order is valid for about six months, although the court has the authority to extend it for up to a year and, in exceptional cases, even two years.
Please note that it is recommended to act in these cases only using Lawyer specializing in family matters And not independently.
What do you need to prove when requesting a restraining order?
A person seeking a restraining order must prove, by reasonable evidence, that he is being harassed or followed or that he is being threatened by another person or family member.
A person requesting such an order may also bring witnesses who will describe the tract for which the order is requested.
Additionally, in order to prove the acts for which an order is sought, photographs, recordings, and any material that can be used as evidence, which can prove the harassment, may be presented to the court.
Since an order for threatening harassment is filed after a complaint has been filed, it is advisable to show the court a copy of the complaint that was filed in advance with the police.
Although the applicant for the order does not have to meet a strict evidentiary burden, on the other hand, a restraining order will not be issued automatically. Not only that, the court has the authority to impose legal costs when a frivolous request is submitted in bad faith.
Examples from court rulings
A restraining order was requested by the children and issued against their father, after he resorted to verbal violence and threats towards his ex-wife and his children. However, the father was given the opportunity to see his children, in accordance with the arrangements Custody determined, and this is done under the supervision and guidance of an external person.
Requests for a restraining order have often been denied when it was proven that the order was requested as part of a procedural tactic. Divorce The purpose of which was to harm the other party. In such cases, courts imposed high legal costs on the person seeking the injunction.
Recently, there has been a trend towards imposing restraining orders as a result of defamation on Facebook. These cases have also occurred within the family unit.
In another case, a restraining order was imposed retroactively, when a woman suffered years of emotional abuse by her ex-husband, as part of their married life. In such circumstances, an order was even issued prohibiting the ex-husband from approaching the city limits where the applicant lived.
A restraining order imposed against a child, at the request of his parents, in a case where he used verbal violence against them to a level that made their lives unbearable.
In another case, the court rejected a request for a restraining order between elderly parents and their child, in a case where the son suffers from moderate mental retardation, because it was not proven that his behavior constituted threatening harassment as defined by law. It was also determined that action should be taken to transfer him to an institution that could treat him in a manner that took into account his mental condition.
Another restraining order was issued in a case involving cousins, after as a result of a financial dispute, one of them threatened the other with a knife.
