Restraining Orders: How will a judge make a decision about whether to grant the order?

Laws current as of March 27, 2024

How will a judge make a decision about whether to grant the order?

When deciding whether to grant a temporary or final ERPO, a judge will consider whether or not the respondent:

has any history of making threats or acting violently towards himself/herself or others, even if a firearm was not involved;
has any serious mental illness or serious emotional disturbance that makes him/her dangerous to himself/herself or others;
has or had an extreme risk protection order, a personal protection order, a pretrial release order, a probation order, a parole order, or another similar order issued against him/her;
has violated an extreme risk or personal protection order;
has any pending charges or convictions for:
- assault and battery;
- stalking;
- an offense that has assault as an element;
- an offense that has a threat as an element;
- a crime committed against the person or property of a spouse or intimate partner;
- cruelty to or abuse of animals; or
- a serious misdemeanor;
has recently used drugs or abused alcohol;
has illegally possessed, used, shown (displayed), or waved around in a threatening way (brandished) a deadly weapon; or
got or tried to get a deadly weapon or ammunition within the last 180 days.¹

¹ MCL § 691.1807(1)