SAN ANTONIO – Is it too hard for Texas domestic violence survivors to get protective orders?
It’s the question an organization spent a year trying to answer. Now that a new survey has been published, survivors are chiming in too.
“In Texas, I was attacked by my boyfriend at the time. I was attacked and beaten with a hammer. It was brutal. I had staples in my head and stitches on my face and broken ribs,” survivor Ashley Ressell said. “And getting an attorney, it’s a financial burden.”
Ressell, who no longer lives in Texas, said it was a miracle she survived.
However, at the time, in her mental and physical state, getting a protective order seemed overwhelming and almost impossible
“Is it a three-month order? Is it a six-month order? I was going for, eventually, a lifetime protection order was appropriate in this scenario,” Ressell said.
Luckily, she found the Texas Advocacy Project that helps domestic violence survivors, and they got her the right protective order.
At the same time, the organization was working on publishing a year-long study on protective orders, seeing how every county in the state handles that process, and looking for gaps.
“Protective orders are mandated by statute. The law states one thing, and then there are what is called local rules that can layer on top of those laws,” Texas Advocacy Project CEO Heather Bellino said.
Bellino said sometimes those “local rules” tend to make things harder for survivors.
“In some counties, you must have a recency of violence,” she said, explaining that there are some limits on the length of time that has passed.
Ressell said that type of rule signals a lack of understanding of victims and what they go through.
“I think a lot of people think that protective orders are just you get a paper signed, and you’re good to go, but you don’t really take into account your physical state, your mental state. You don’t know when the abusers even, you don’t know if they’re in jail, out of jail, these kinds of things,” Ressell said.
The research team also found that about 23% of the counties surveyed required a police report to be filed in order for a survivor to file a protective order.
Bellino and Ressell mentioned that it can be dangerous for some victims to make an immediate police report, and rules like that deny them the protection they desperately need.
“Imagine when you’re going to get a protective order, it’s because you’ve been harmed and you are in deep crisis and you just need somebody to believe you and to hear you and to say this will not happen again and if it does, there are real consequences,” Bellino said.
One of the most striking findings from the survey was that three Texas counties do not offer protective orders at all, an issue Bellino and her team intend to address.
“The way the laws are stated, a protective order doesn’t necessarily have to happen where you live. It could also happen where the abuse occurs. So if one county over another county has a smoother pathway, we’re going to want to assist them in understanding that smoother pathway so that we can get them that safety that they so deserve,” Bellino said. “If it’s not safe to apply for a protective order in that area, perhaps may be getting to shelter somewhere else is and establishing your residency, whether temporary or not.”
Bellino also said another big issue she found is that some counties make it difficult for victims to get a protective order if they’ve already filed for a divorce.
Then there’s the other problem: only 183 of Texas’ 254 counties responded to the survey.
Bexar County, one of the largest in the state, did not respond to any of the three attempts.
“That’s hard, right? But without being able to have a good conversation with them, we don’t always know the reason why,” Bellino said about not being able to contact many of the counties.
After hearing that, KSAT reached out to the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office. A spokesperson said they did not receive the survey requests.
Since KSAT intervened, someone with the county’s Collaborative Commission on Domestic Violence reached out to “discuss this oversight directly.” The Texas Advocacy Project stated that they are now in communication with Bexar County and are obtaining the necessary information.
“We know that the Family Justice Center (is) there and we know there are a lot of attorneys helping victims to get protective orders in that area. We just were not able to add them in to our report this time,” Bellino said.
About 28% of Texas counties aren’t on the report, which was published April 18.
“Those counties that did not respond are the ones that we’re going to try to work the closest with to understand what their process is and to insert ourselves as a helpful arm,” Bellino said.
The goal now is to see what changes need to be made, whether it’s training, adding resources or even changing laws.
“This is not a study that is supposed to be a, ‘I gotcha, you’re not doing this right and we’re going to come get you.’ We are here to help them to see the shortfalls. Even celebrate the wins. Where can we support better? Where do you need more training? Where can we make legislative changes?” Bellino said.
Survivors applaud the effort and help counties will take a look at their processes and re-evaluate.
“Just hoping that it becomes easier. Like it is a very serious thing and everybody should have the right to defend themselves on the other end, but it should be as easy as X, Y, Z,” Ressell said.
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic violence, there is help for you. KSAT has a list of resources on its Domestic Violence webpage, which also explains how to identify different types of abuse.
If it’s an emergency, text or call 911. For wrap-around services, including the Battered Women and Children’s Shelter, call Family Violence Prevention Services at (210) 733-8810.
You can also contact the Bexar County Family Justice Center, which also provides wrap-around services at (210) 631-0100.