Restraining orders (also called protection orders) may be issued by Colorado courts to regulate or prohibit contact between certain individuals. If you are served with a restraining order, promptly consult Colorado Springs restraining order attorney John Joyner at Joyner Law.

A protection order may be issued by a Colorado court to protect an individual from assaults, threats, stalking, domestic abuse, sexual abuse, abuse of the elderly, or the abuse of any at-risk person in this state.

A protection order typically prohibits the person who is named in the restraining order from having any contact with the person who sought the restraining order. There may be no contact whatsoever at home, school, or work, or by phone, online, or through a third person.

Are There Different Types of Restraining Orders in Colorado?

A restraining order may entail devastating personal consequences. You could be ordered to leave your home, barred from contacting your children, and banned from owning a firearm – without being convicted of a crime. Three kinds of restraining orders are issued by Colorado courts:

  1. Criminal courts may issue mandatory protection orders during criminal cases. Such an order may forbid a defendant from engaging in certain behaviors such as having contact with a victim, owning a firearm, or using drugs or alcohol while the case is pending.
  2. A court may issue a temporary civil protection order based on an accuser’s statements in front of a judge. The order may be rescinded if the court later determines the claims are false, or the order may become permanent if the court determines that the claims are true.
  3. A permanent civil protection order is issued if a court determines that someone is in fact endangered by another person. If a permanent civil protection order is issued against you in Colorado, you must wait four years to ask the court to rescind it.

What Can Happen If You Violate a Restraining Order?

If you knowingly violate a restraining order issued by a Colorado court in a criminal case, you may be charged with a Class One misdemeanor and penalized with up to eighteen months in jail upon conviction.

Knowingly violating a restraining order issued by a Colorado court in a civil case is a Class Two misdemeanor punishable upon conviction with up to one year in jail. The penalties will be harsher if you are convicted of a second or subsequent violation or if the order was issued in relation to a stalking case or someone you were in a relationship with.

You should challenge a restraining order when it goes into effect and before any violations are alleged. To challenge a restraining order aggressively and effectively, you’ll need to be advised and represented by Colorado Springs restraining order attorney John Joyner at Joyner Law.

What Else Should You Know About Restraining Orders?

A hearing to make a temporary protection order permanent must be conducted within fourteen days of the date the order is issued. Let attorney John Joyner advocate on your behalf at that hearing and tell the court why the order is unwarranted or based on false or exaggerated claims.

If you are targeted with a restraining order in or near Colorado Springs, fight back, put your case in capable hands, and schedule your first consultation with Colorado Springs defense attorney John Joyner at Joyner Law by calling 719-548-4750.