In Washington, the courts expect exact compliance with the terms of a protection order. The safest way to approach this is straightforward. If the order says no contact, stay away and stay quiet. Do not communicate with the person who sought the order, and do not go any place you are excluded from going. Also, do not contact the individual through another person, as that counts as third party contact.
Additionally, the law states that you are still in violation of a protective order if you make contact after being invited to do so. That means you must still comply with the terms of the protective order, even if the individual who sought the order communicates with you or invites you to communicate with them.
Lastly, a lot of people think a violation only happens if there is a face-to-face confrontation. That is false. Electronic contact even via other people is a violation. Under Chapter 7.105 RCW, Washington courts can order a person not to harm, contact, stalk, monitor, or come within a set distance of the protected person. The order can also exclude someone from a residence, workplace, school, daycare, vehicle, or other listed place. Some orders also protect children or other household members, not just the person who asked for the order.
Start With The Order
To figure out what you can and cannot do, you should look at the order itself. Washington’s standard form includes restraints for no harm, no contact, stalking behavior, and stay away terms. It also includes a place for the court to list exceptions. Be careful, though, if there are exceptions listed. If the order allows only one narrow type of contact, anything outside that exception can still be treated as a violation. We always recommend consulting with a protection order lawyer if you have any questions or concerns.
Common Behavior That Violates Protection Orders
- Direct in person contact. If the order says no contact, you cannot walk up to the protected person and talk. You cannot wait outside the home, job, or school to “just talk for a minute.” If the order says you must stay a certain distance away, coming within that distance, or staying there once you know the protected person is present, is a violation. That violation can result in criminal charges. Washington law specifically treats prohibited contact, exclusion from listed places, and knowingly coming within or remaining within a barred distance as criminally enforceable terms in many protection orders.
- Calls, texts, emails, and online messages. The Washington protection order form says no contact includes nonphysical contact. The statute also allows courts to bar contact that is direct, indirect, or through third parties. That means a phone call, voicemail, text message, email, direct message, or similar communication can count. A short apology still counts as contact. A message that says “call me” still counts as contact. A person does not get a free pass because there was no in person meeting. Online conduct can create problems for another reason too. Washington law allows protection orders to prohibit stalking behavior, physical or electronic surveillance, cyber harassment, and the use of phone, video, audio, or other electronic means to record, photograph, track, or monitor a protected person’s location or communications. So, the issue is not limited to calling or texting. Depending on the wording of the order, using apps, devices, or online accounts to watch, track, or harass the protected person can also support a violation allegation.
- Third party contact. This is the part that surprises people most. Washington’s protection order form bars contact made through third parties, even if those third parties do not know about the order. So, if a restrained person asks a friend, sibling, parent, coworker, or child to pass along a message, that will likely be a violation. It does not have to be a threat. It can be something that sounds harmless, like “tell her I want to talk” or “tell my daughter I love her.” If the order says no contact, sending the message through someone else is still unlawful contact.
Permission Impossible
A common mistake clients make is thinking the protected person can undo the order by reaching out first. In Washington, that is not a defense. The warning printed on the protection order form says the restrained person can be arrested even if the protected person invites or allows the violation. So if the protected person calls, texts, emails, or asks to meet, the restrained person still has to follow the order as written. If there is an exception written into the order, you should follow the exception exactly and call us at 206-970-3030. If there is no exception, do not make up your own.
Gray Areas
Some situations feel gray, but they are not always treated that way by police or prosecutors. A child exchange can become a violation if the order does not allow direct communication and a parent uses the exchange to argue, apologize, or pass messages. Going to retrieve property can also create risk unless the order, or a later court order, clearly allows it. Even a stop outside a listed home or workplace can be enough if the order has a stay away term. The order, not the parties’ private understanding, always controls.
If you have any concerns about your responsibilities under a protection order, please call us at 206-970-3030. We are very experienced with these matters and can answer any questions that you have.
Washington uses one civil protection order chapter, 7.105 RCW, for domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, anti-harassment, and vulnerable adult cases, with separate rules for extreme risk orders. The category matters because the penalty section is not identical for every type of order. Read the order and follow the restraints exactly. Do not guess about what is allowed.
Knowledge Matters
Under RCW 7.105.465, a person generally cannot be subjected to the chapter 7.105 penalties unless that person knows about the order. Officers who investigate an alleged violation are supposed to try to determine whether the respondent knew the order existed. If the respondent likely did not know, an officer can serve the order and then enforce future compliance. However, you may be served without realizing it. Always consult a lawyer before contacting a protected person even if you are not certain there is an order.
Penalties Can Be Serious
There are substantial penalties for violating a protection order. For domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and most protection orders, a violation is generally a gross misdemeanor. The violation can also be punished as contempt of court. Some violations become felonies, including assaultive violations of certain orders and some repeat violation cases. Adult violations of anti-harassment protection orders are also gross misdemeanors under RCW 7.105.455. However, depending on the restrained person’s criminal history, even an electronic text could result in a felony criminal case.
Remember that there are absolutely no exceptions to the rules and the courts will examine your behavior very closely. Do not reply to a text “just once.” Do not send a message through someone else. Do not show up at a place listed in the order. Do not assume the other person’s consent fixes the problem. Read every line of the protection order. That document is what matters and ignoring it is how many violation cases begin. If something needs to change, call our office. You need to get the protection order modified before you can do anything else.
If you have been accused of violating a protection order in Seattle or anywhere in Washington, you should get legal advice quickly. A criminal defense lawyer can review the order and the evidence, and help protect your freedom.
To set up a complimentary consultation, please contact us today at 206-970-3030 or complete our online contact form.