New Public Access Module for Protection Order Registry
When a person is a victim of domestic violence, time is not a friend. The typical routine for a victim has been: drive to the courthouse; park; find the Clerk’s office; wait in line; explain the troubled situation; and then discuss in a less than private setting the victim’s personal safety needs. Hopefully, the victim will find someone with a sympathetic ear who is able to provide the help needed from the judicial system.
This is the existing procedure for a sometimes desperate victim to obtain a protective order from one of our Indiana courts. The Indiana Supreme Court determined that there had to be a better way to help protect a victim from abuse.
The Division of State Court Administration, through the Judicial Technology and Automation Committee (JTAC), has been working on a solution along with the Indiana Coalition against Domestic Violence, victim advocates, and the Clerks of Circuit Courts. Together they are designing and creating a streamlined and secure process for making an online request for a Protection Order.
The Indiana Criminal Justice Institute awarded JTAC a $135,235 grant to add a public access feature to its electronic Protection Order Registry.
The new Public Interface component of the Protection Order Registry will allow victims, alone or with the help of advocates, to fill out the request online. Once the forms are completed online, the petitioner can print out the finished paperwork and take it to the courthouse for processing. Or, the petitioner can complete the forms online and upon arrival at the courthouse ask the clerk to retrieve the secure file and print it out. The clerk will assign a case number and present the petition and other paperwork to the judge. Only the petitioner and the clerk will be authorized to see the file.
“Volunteers are able to help victims with the forms needed to obtain a Protection Order without having to complete the paperwork at the courthouse. We strongly support the creation of the Protection Order Registry. This will enhance our efforts to serve victims of abuse,” said Laura Berry Berman, Executive Director of the Indiana Coalition against Domestic Violence.
The electronic Protection Order Registry is currently being used in 66 Indiana counties. After a judge issues a Protective Order, and before the petitioner has even left the courthouse parking lot, a notice of the order is transmitted to the appropriate local law enforcement agencies where the parties live and work and also added to state and federal law enforcement databanks. These actions provide increased safety for the victim as well as for the law enforcement officers.
“During a recent JTAC domestic violence training session for members of our police department, an officer checked on an arrest he had made the prior weekend. He looked at his laptop in his car, and within three minutes he was able to confirm that a no contact order had been issued on that individual. His ease at locating this information made a huge impact on everyone in that training session. JTAC provides protection to our citizens and our law enforcement officers with twenty-four hour access to this vital information,” said Robert E. Roberts, Vigo County Chief Deputy Prosecutor.
The Indiana Supreme Court has worked closely with Indiana State Police (ISP) in this effort to protect victims of domestic violence. ISP continues to cooperate with the Supreme Court to ensure all records are compliant with state and national standards.
Since January 1, 2008, more than 43,000 orders have been processed in the Registry.