Restraining Orders

You can file for a protective order for sexual offenses, stalking, or cyber-harassment if you do not have an intimate relationship with the  person who committed or attempted to commit an act of nonconsensual sexual contact, sexual penetration, lewdness, stalking, or cyber-harassment against you.¹  If the abuser is a former or current intimate partner, then you would file for a domestic violence restraining order instead.

A parent or guardian can file for a protective order for sexual offenses, stalking, or cyber-harassment on the victim’s behalf if the victim is:

• a minor;
• an adult with a developmental disability; or
• an adult with a mental condition that means s/he cannot understand the nature of his/her own actions.² 

However, if the abuser is a minor and unemancipated, you would instead file a complaint under a proceeding that deals with juvenile delinquency. See section 2A:4A-30 on our Selected New Jersey Statutes page to read this part of the law.³ 

If the abuser is the parent, guardian, or other person having custody and control over the minor victim, the law requires that you instead report the abuse to the Division of Child Protection and Permanency in the Department of Children and Families for investigation and possible legal action.⁴

¹ N.J. Stat. § 2C:14-14(a)(1)
² N.J. Stat. § 2C:14-14(a)(2)
³ N.J. Stat. § 2C:14-14(b)(1)
⁴ N.J. Stat. § 2C:14-14(b)(2)