In Greeley and Weld County, any person charged with a domestic violence offense automatically becomes the restrained party on a criminal protection order, with the alleged victim begin the protected party. It doesn’t matter if the allegation is a simple Harassment, where one party yelled at the other, or a serious Assault with bodily injury – the protection order is entered just the same. Under C.R.S. 18-1-1001 – Protection Order Against Defendant – the following are standard conditions of criminal protection orders, where the defendant:
- Shall not harass, molest, intimidate, retaliate against, or tamper with any witness to or victim of the acts you are charged with committing;
- Shall vacate the home of the victim(s) or witness(es), and stay away from any other location the victim(s) or witness(es) is/are likely to be found;
- Shall refrain from contacting or directly or indirectly communicating with the victim(s) or witness(es);
- Shall not possess, purchase, or control a firearm;
- Shall not purchase any ammunition;
- Shall relinquish, for the duration of the order, any firearm or ammunition in your immediate possession or control;
- Shall not possess or consume alcoholic beverages or controlled substances; and
- Any other conditions the court deems appropriate.
A judge can and will choose which conditions are appropriate, so the person may not have to abide by all the conditions listed above.
New Law Regarding Mandatory Protection Orders in DV Cases: Animals and Telephone Services
The newest law passed regarding mandatory protection orders in criminal cases adds two new conditions for protection orders. The first condition that will be added under C.R.S. 18-1-1001 is:
- Shall not take, transfer, conceal, harm, dispose of, or threaten to harm an animal owned, possessed, leased, kept, or held by an alleged victim or witness.
This condition applies to ANY criminal protection order, not just those related to domestic violence. The second condition is specific to domestic violence protection orders and will be found under C.R.S. 18-1-1001.5 – Transfer of Wireless Telephone Service in Domestic Violence Cases. This provision states that the court may enter an order:
- Directing a wireless telephone service provider to transfer the financial responsibility for and rights to a wireless telephone number or numbers to the alleged victim or witness
Again, these conditions would only be entered if they specifically applied to the particular case and situation presented to the judge.
If you or a loved one has been charged with a Domestic Violence offense, be smart, exercise your right to remain silent, and contact the best criminal defense attorneys from the O’Malley Law Office at 970-616-6009 to schedule your free consultation. Together, we can protect your future.
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