What’s New on WomensLaw.org

We updated the information for two resources, YWCA Utah and Midvale City Police Dept. - Victim Advocate Program, on our Utah Local Programs page in English. Spanish coming soon! 

We added listings for the three California locations of one new resource, Sierra Community House, on our California Local Programs page. We also removed Tahoe Women’s Services because it merged with other organizations to form Sierra Community House. All changes made in English; Spanish coming soon!

Based on 2022 amendments to the laws, we did the following:

• Revised Who can file for an extreme risk protection order? in our New York Extreme Risk Protection Orders section to add a list of medical and mental health professionals who can file for an extreme risk protection order if they have treated the respondent within the prior six months. Changes made in English; Spanish soon to come.
• Revised If the judge orders the abuser’s guns to be taken away in my order of protection, how will they be taken away? in our New York State Gun Laws page in English and Spanish to explain that it’s mandatory, not optional, for the judge to order seizure of firearms if the respondent willfully fails to surrender them.

We also added two related statutes to our Selected New York Statutes page.

In our Florida Restraining Orders section, we created the question Can my injunction be extended, changed, or dismissed? in our Injunctions for Protection Against Repeat Violence, Dating Violence, or Sexual Violence section. We also revised a similar question in our Injunctions for Protection Against Stalking/Cyberstalking page and our Injunctions for Protection Against Domestic Violence page to add information about extension of orders; previously both questions only addressed changing and dismissing an order. Changes made in English and Spanish.

We added the following two questions to our Puerto Rico Sexual Violence Restraining Orders in English and Spanish: What should I do when I leave the courthouse? and I was not granted a protection order. What are my options?

We added the crime of “unlawful sexual intercourse with person under 18” (statutory rape) to our California Crimes page in English and Spanish.

In our Maine State Gun Laws section, we updated I am a victim of domestic violence and the abuser has a gun. Is that legal? and What is the penalty for violating state firearm laws? to clarify that anyone who has a protection from abuse order against him/her that prohibits him/her from having a firearm or other dangerous weapon- regardless of the relationship with the victim- would also be prohibited from having a firearm or dangerous weapon while that protection order is in effect. We also updated If the abuser’s gun is taken away, what will happen to it? to include information about what happens if the abuser turns over his/her gun to someone other than a law enforcement officer. Updated in English; Spanish coming soon!

We translated into Spanish the question What types of order for protections are there? How long do they last? in our Indiana Orders for Protection page.

We translated into Spanish the South Carolina Divorce page.

We translated into Spanish the edits made in the Oklahoma Restraining Orders pages based on 2022 statutory changes.

We translated into Spanish small edits made to our Arizona Divorce page.

We translated into Spanish various edits in our New Jersey Extreme Risk Protective Order, Custody and Divorce pages. 

On our Ohio Custody page we revised the question Can I change an order after it is issued? so that it was easier to understand what the standards are to change an existing order. Changes made in English and Spanish.

We translated into Spanish recent updates to our Maryland Domestic Violence Protective Orders page.

We have translated into Spanish our Minnesota Workplace Protections section. 

We have translated into Spanish our Minnesota Restraining Orders page.

We combined three questions in the Colorado State Gun Laws section to update and clarify the answer to the question I have a protection order against the abuser. Can the abuser have a gun? Changes made in English; Spanish coming soon!

We add a listing for one new organization, the Identity Theft Resource Center, to our Financial Information/Economic Empowerment section in English. Spanish coming soon! 

In our South Carolina Restraining Orders Against Stalking or Harassment section, we revised What types of restraining orders against stalking or harassment are there? How long do they last? to add the fact that if the defendant gets criminally charged with the crime of harassment in the first or second degree or stalking while the order is still in effect and there is a trial date scheduled, the order will remain in effect until the trial ends. 

We added a statute related to small claims court to our Selected Georgia Statutes page.

We updated the Illinois Download Court Forms page in English and Spanish to fix outdated links and to add the link to small claims court forms.

In our Indiana Orders for Protection section, we revised What types of order for protections are there? How long do they last? to include the circumstances under which a judge will order a hearing and to add information about the fact that if the respondent is a “sex or violent offender,” the order can last indefinitely. We also updated links to petitions on the Indiana Courts website in two questions. Changes made in English; Spanish coming soon. Lastly, we added the related statute that defines “sex or violent offender” to our Selected Indiana Statutes page.

We translated into Spanish the following revisions on our Connecticut State Gun Laws page:

• I am a victim of domestic violence and the abuser has a gun. Is that legal? 
• I have a temporary restraining order against the abuser. Can his/her gun be taken away?
• I have a final restraining order against the abuser. Can s/he keep a gun or buy a new gun?
• I do not have a restraining order against the abuser and s/he has not been convicted of a crime. Can s/he have a gun?

We added the crimes of “breach of computer security” and “unlawful installation of tracking device” to our Texas Crimes page in English and Spanish. We also added the two related statutes to our Selected Texas Statutes page.

We updated the information for ZeroV (formerly known as the Kentucky Coalition Against Domestic Violence) on our Kentucky Statewide Programs page.

We developed our first set of Korean quick guides on divorce and custody basics. They are available in our Quick Guides page and are also available in English and Spanish.

We updated the information for Timpanogos Legal Center on our Utah Legal Assistance page.

We translated into Spanish a new question called What types of alimony are there and how long can alimony last? in our New Jersey Divorce page.

We translated the Kansas Divorce page into Spanish.

We updated the information for Canyon Creek Service (formerly Canyon Creek Women’s Crisis Center) on our Utah Local Programs page.

We updated our National Organizations - Abuse Victims Charged with Crimes section and our Helping Others - Lawyers page in English and Spanish to reflect the fact that the National Clearinghouse for the Defense of Battered Women changed its name to the National Defense Center for Criminalized Survivors and became part of the Battered Women’s Justice Project. 

We added the resource Lila.Help to our National Organizations - Immigration page in English and Spanish.

We updated the contact information for a resource, Tri-County Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, that has three offices in Forest, Oneida, and Vilas Counties on our Wisconsin Local Programs page.

We updated the information for a resource, Priest River Ministries, which has three offices in Bonner and Kootenai Counties on our Idaho Local Programs page.

We added the Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence’s Virtual Legal Clinic as a new resource on our Illinois Legal Assistance page. We also updated our Illinois Statewide Programs page to include it there as well.

We updated contact information and descriptions of services for 8 resources on our Maine Legal Assistance page in English and Spanish.

In our U.S. Virgin Islands Child Support page, we re-wrote the answers to How is the amount of child support determined? and When and where should I file for child support?  We also created a new question called How will I get the child support payments owed to me? We also added three related statutes to our Selected U.S. Virgin Islands Statutes page.

We added the following questions to our Nebraska Custody section:

• What is custody?
• What is a parenting plan?
• What must be included in a parenting plan?
• What is mediation?
• What factors will a judge consider when deciding custody?
• Can a parent who has committed violence or is a registered sex offender get custody?
• Should I start a court case to ask for supervised visits?

​Questions added in English; Spanish coming soon! We also added six related statutes to our Selected Nebraska Statutes page.

We translated into Spanish our Kansas Custody page. 

In our Nevada Child Support page, we did the following:

• Revised I was supporting my children by myself before I filed for child support. Can I get child support for that period of time? to include information about the father’s obligation to pay the expenses of the mother’s pregnancy.
• Revised How will the amount of child support be decided? to explain the new formula for calculating child support that took effect in 2020. (We regret the delay in updating this information.)
• Created two new questions called Is the cost of child care included in a child support order? and When can a child support order be modified?

We added six child support-related statutes to our Selected Nevada Statutes page.

(For the text revisions, Spanish coming soon!)

Based on a 2022 addition to the law, we revised Can a parent who has been violent get parental rights and responsibilities and/or visitation? in our Maine Custody page to explain the option to request that the judge order a “forensic risk assessment” if a parent is concerned about his/her child’s safety.

Based on 2022 amendments to the law, we did the following in English and Spanish:

• In our Arizona Injunctions Against Harassment section, we revised What is an injunction against harassment? to delete the part of the definition that defined harassment as “any contact if the person is the victim of a crime that was committed by the defendant.”
• In our Arizona Domestic Violence Orders of Protection section, we updated three questions to reflect that permanent orders of protection now last two years instead of one. We also updated What types of protection orders are there? How long do they last? to reflect the fact that emergency orders now last seven calendar days instead of 72 hours.
• In our Arizona Divorce section, we added information to What are the grounds for divorce in Arizona? about how a judge will determine if a marriage is irretrievably broken when both parties agree that it is and when one party disagrees. We also added to Can  I get alimony? the fact that spousal support is only supposed to be ordered only for a period of time and in an amount necessary to enable the receiving spouse to become self-sufficient. (Spanish coming soon!)

We updated a resource on our Rhode Island Statewide Programs page in both English and Spanish.

We created a new robust and comprehensive South Dakota Custody page. Over the 22 questions created, we cover how custody is defined in the law; what are the parental guidelines including when they apply; custody considerations when one of the parents is an abuser; and how the judge will make a decision. On our South Dakota Selected Statutes we also uploaded 47 sections of the law that include the information used to create this custody page. 

Based on 2022 amendments to the laws, we did the following in our Vermont Relief from Abuse Orders page:

• Revised What protections can I get in a relief from abuse order? to add that a judge can order the abuser to immediately give up his/her firearms and to not get any new firearms as part of a temporary ex parte order.
• Revised What types of relief from abuse orders are available? How long do they last? to add that an application for an ex parte order can be made over the phone. (We also added information from a 2018 amendment that we regrettably failed to add earlier, namely, that ex parte orders can be issued when courts are closed with the help of law enforcement.) 

In addition, we did the following:

• Added five statutes to our Selected Vermont Statutes page, one related to small claims court and four related to crimes.
• Added seven crimes to our Vermont Crimes page, namely ”simple assault,” “aggravated assault,” “recklessly endangering another person,” “interference with access to emergency services,” “domestic assault,” “first degree aggravated domestic assault,” and “second degree aggravated domestic assault.”

In our Virginia Crimes page, we changed the Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund to the Virginia Victims Fund and updated the link to the new state’s website. Changes made in English and Spanish.

We created a new section about the Puerto Rico Sexual Assault Restraining Orders in Spanish. English coming soon. We also added the related statutes to our Selected Puerto Rico Statutes page.

In our Mississippi Custody section, we created a question called How does a parent’s military deployment affect his/her custody and visitation rights? We also added the related statute to our Selected Mississippi Statutes page.

We added the crimes of “reckless conduct,” “terrorizing,” and “interfering with the reporting of family violence” to our Guam Crimes page and Selected Guam Statutes page. In addition, based on 2022 amendments, we updated the language of the following laws on our Selected Guam Statutes page: “first degree criminal sexual conduct,” “second degree criminal sexual conduct,” ”third degree criminal sexual conduct,” and “fourth degree criminal sexual conduct.”

Based on 2022 additions to Oklahoma law, we did the following: 

1. Updated the two questions entitled “What is the legal definition of stalking in Oklahoma?” to include the definition for “course of conduct” in our Oklahoma Stalking Protective Orders section and Domestic Violence Protective Orders section.
2. Updated What is a stalking protective order? What steps must I take before filing for the order? in our Oklahoma Stalking Protective Orders section to explain that the law requires police to serve a “Stalking Warning Letter” upon the accused after a report of stalking is made. 
3. Added the fact that an adult victim of any crime can also qualify for a protective order in What are the reasons (grounds) for getting a protective order? in our Oklahoma Domestic Violence Protective Orders section.
4. Updated What types of protective orders are available? How long do they last? in our Oklahoma Domestic Violence Protective Orders section.to add the fact that to get a “continuous order,” the victim can now provide any proof to the judge that shows why such an order is necessary. We also added more information about what a law enforcement officer should do if a judge approves an emergency order when the courts are closed.
5. Updated What protections can I get in a protective order? in our Oklahoma Domestic Violence Protective Orders section and What protections can I get in a stalking protective order? in our Oklahoma Stalking Protective Orders section to add the new pre-printed warnings that appear in these protective orders.

In addition, we included the following information in the two questions entitled “What is the legal definition of stalking in Oklahoma?” in our Oklahoma Stalking Protective Orders section and Domestic Violence Protective Orders section:

• a more clear definition of “stalking;” and
• the fact that the legal definition of harassment includes:
  • making obscene, threatening or harassing calls or other electronic communications; and
  • committing malicious intimidation or harassment because of race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin or disability.

We then added the crime of “malicious intimidation or harassment because of race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin or disability” to our Oklahoma Crimes page and Selected Oklahoma Statutes page.

Lastly, in our Oklahoma Victim Protective Orders section, in What acts of violence can qualify me for a victim protective order?, we hyperlinked the crimes that qualify someone for an order to the statutory definitions to make comprehension easier.

All changes made in English; Spanish coming soon!

We translated into Spanish 8 recently updated questions in our Illinois Workplace Protections page.

We translated into Spanish our Michigan Custody page.

In our Montana Suing an Abuser for Money page, we updated the link to court forms on the Judicial Branch website. We also added a statute related to small claims court to our Selected Montana Statutes page. 

We updated contact information for two organizations on our West Virginia Local Programs page.

In our Illinois Divorce page, we translated into Spanish the newly created question called If I don’t have money to hire a lawyer, can the judge order my spouse to pay my attorney’s fees? and the added information to Can I get alimony? What factors will a judge consider? about how a judge will decide whether to issue temporary maintenance. 

In our New Jersey Divorce page, we revised If I get a lawyer, can the judge order my spouse to pay my attorney fees? to add the factors that a judge will consider when determining the amount of an award of attorneys fees. Spanish coming soon. We also updated our New Jersey Download Court Forms page in English and Spanish to add links to divorce forms and restraining orders forms.

We added the following nine crimes to our North Dakota Crimes page and Selected North Dakota Statutes page: 

• Aggravated assault
• Domestic violence
• Reckless endangerment
• Menacing
• Criminal coercion
• Sexual imposition
• Gross sexual imposition
• Surreptitious intrusion
• Sexual extortion

Based on 2022 amendments to the law, we revised two questions in our Delaware State Gun Laws section to change the prohibition of firearm possession from a “juvenile” to anyone under 21 unless it’s for the purpose of hunting, sport, etc., and other exceptions are met.

In our Delaware Crimes page, we added the crime of “sexual extortion.” We also changed the name of ”strangulation” to “strangulation or suffocation” based on a 2022 amendment to the law. Lastly, we added the sexual extortion law to our Selected Delaware Statutes page. 

Based on a 2022 amendment to the law, we updated two questions in our Missouri Orders of Protection due to Domestic Violence section and one question in our Missouri Orders of Protection due to Stalking or Sexual Assault section to clarify that if a judge orders the abuser to pay the victim’s attorney’s fees, it can cover the time period before bringing the court case, during the court case, and after the entry of judgment.

In our Minnesota Housing Laws page, we added two questions about protections from discrimination for victims.

Based on 2022 amendments to the law, updated our Kentucky Restraining Orders section as follows:

1. Revised What is the legal definition of domestic violence in Kentucky? and What is the legal definition of dating violence and abuse, sexual assault, and stalking? to add the following additional acts of violence to the definition of domestic violence and dating violence:
   • committing cruelty to animals in the 1^st or 2^nd degree;
   • torturing a dog or cat; 
   • committing sexual crimes against an animal; or
   • making you fear that the acts listed above will immediately be committed against a domestic animal with which you have a close bond in order to coerce, control, punish, intimidate you or to get revenge against you.
2. Revised What protections can I get in an emergency protective order and a domestic violence order? and What protections can I get in an interpersonal protective order? to include the following additional protections:
   • stating which communications are allowed and which are not allowed, permitting limited communication if you request it;
   • allowing either party to get his/her personal belongings from the home and order law enforcement to assist, if requested (in a DV order only); 
   • give you possession of any shared domestic animal; and
   • if you request it, allow you and the abuser to be in a common area together under limited circumstances.

We also added these crimes to our Kentucky Crimes page four related statutes to our Selected Kentucky Statutes page.

We added a new question to the Divorce page in every state and territory called “Where can I find additional information about divorce on WomensLaw.org?” to link users to our divorce videos and more.  It was also added in Spanish to the 30 states that are currently translated into Spanish.

We added the following new questions in English and Spanish:

• To the Custody section in 38 states, ”If I move to a new state, can I transfer my custody case there?” (The remaining 16 states already have a similar question.)
• To the Restraining Orders section in 54 states/territories, “If I get a protection order, will it show up in an internet search?”

We translated into Spanish our Tennessee Crimes page. 

We translated into Spanish our recently created Safety in School page in our Safety Tips section.

We translated into Spanish the recent updates to the question Can a parent who committed violence get custody (parental responsibility) or visitation (time-sharing)? in our Florida Custody page.