Q: If I was asked if i wanted contact with the person who hurt me & i said no, can they just come get their stuff?
Stepdaughter (18) got arrested for battery-bodily harm- domestic. it was on me, before she went into the first court to set a date, i was asked over the phone if i wanted contact with her. I said no, i'm trying to figure out how to get an order of protection but can she just drop by my house to grab what little stuff she has there? they ROR'd her but has a court date set. (jacksonville, fl)
A: First, if you were the victim of domestic violence in Florida, then the court should have issued a "stay away order" immediately after the arrest, which generally means that the defendant can't contact you by any means or be within 500 feet of you. The court will usually allow the defendant to return to the shared residence accompanied by a police officer in order to pick up their belongings within 48 hours of the arrest. She can't just drop by. She would need to arrange to do this with the local law enforcement agency. You should call the State Attorney's Office handling the case and ask if there is a stay away order in place to protect you. There should be a prosecutor working this specific case. They will need to speak to you in order to decide whether to press charges or not, and to keep you informed along the way. That is probably who you spoke to over the phone. Good luck with this. I hope it gets better between you and your stepdaughter.
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