Is it possible to get a “just in case” restraining order if a person hasn’t done anything yet? What if they live in another part of the country?
What is it you want to restrain them from doing, and why?
IANAL,
IIRC restraining orders CAN be issued for nuisance people but its expensive and probably not worth the time.
If the person is threatening you in some way you can get a normal restraining order for free!
If the problem person lives in another part of the country with no easy means to visit you. Most law enforcement agencies would probably tell you to let them know if:
[ul]
[li]the person comes to town[/li][li]they make a direct threat against your safety[/li][li]Hi Opal![/li][li]are harassing you via phone or email[/li][/ul]
If its #4 the phone company and or your ISP may be able to help you
Most if not all judges require just cause before issuing a restraining order. My state even requires a justifiable proof before one can be given. And restraining orders are limited to the jurisidiction of the court, one issued in California isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on outside of the state. If a restraining order was to be issued against someone who hasn’t done anything, it would be a violation of their civil rights and the person could sue for malicious harrassment.
I think it’s pretty hard to get a restarining order on someone if they haven’t “done” anything. When the cops aren’t familiar with the situation/people, and they aren’t for a lot of them, they seem to fall back on the technical laws rather than the real potential of the situation since it’s all hearsay. This is especially true of people with mental disorders. I have an aunt who is manic depressive, and when not on her medication going by what she has said and done in the past will almost certainly try kill any baby she can get her hands on (can’t let them grow up in this horrible world)… but she’s never actually done anything other than get thrown in the looney bin every now and then for a short time. Therefore, tough… the law couldn’t do anything at all since she’s never commited a crime. We just stay away from her, and that’s all we can do too.
Then again there’s also the problem of having a restraining order enforced. It’s not like they assign a squad car to follow the person around 24/7 and arrest them every time they get within the 50 feet or whatever is on the order. In some countries and/or areas restraining orders can be issued, but are not even enforcible (going by the news in my area)… don’t quote me on that last bit though - I hope it’s wrong!