Category: Protective Orders

Protective orders are the best tool we have to reduce the risks that domestic violence victims’ face as they separate from abusive partners.  Protective orders reduce the severity and frequency of violence, or end it altogether, in about 70% of cases.  To be effective, protective orders must be paired with a safety plan that can include steps such as staying at an address that is unknown to the abuser, shelter, criminal charges, or changing the locks at home.

Maryland has a strong protective order law, but where’s the justice? Victims face many barriers to justice in our courts. The stories below include Maryland protective order data, information on common barriers, and many stories our volunteers have documented in court about justice denied.

Share your thoughts on what needs to change in our courts and how we can best expand justice for domestic violence survivors.

New data show wide variation in intimate partner violence results at MD courts

A new Court Watch analysis of all 17,484 final protective order hearings in MD District and Circuit Courts in 2013 shows that although all Maryland courts operate under the same domestic violence laws, courts in Maryland’s 24 counties granted, denied, and dismissed final protective orders at dramatically different rates. Read the PRESS RELEASE…

New report out today on Circuit Court’s practices in domestic violence cases (Nov. 2013)

Court Watch new report

Protection for victims of domestic violence in Montgomery County’s Circuit Court – Deaths from domestic violence are a continuing and preventable tragedy in Maryland. In each of the last three fiscal years, the number of domestic violence victims killed in Maryland has increased. From July 2011 through June 2012, 49 Maryland residents died as a result of domestic violence. […]

Reaction to our first study has been tremendous

Reaction to Court Watch study

State court personnel expressed appreciation for the study and sent it to every district court judge in the state. Some of the recommendations will apparently be incorporated into new judge and bailiff training state-wide. Citizens in numerous other Maryland counties have expressed interest in setting up local court watch programs. We are glad to strategize, […]