A restraining order can be issued to refrain a spouse from entering the marital home, entering a vehicle of the marriage, changing insurance, spending unwisely, retrain from harassing contact, and denying access to a child of the marriage.

If someone violates a restraining order, you have to go to court and ask a judge for a hearing to decide whether the person actually violated the restraining order. The police cannot arrest someone for violating a restraining order; you must go back to the judge who issued the restraining order to enforce it.

A protective order is a court order that It can order the abuser to stay 200 yards away from where you live or work. It can also order the abuser not to commit family violence or threaten you or harass you or threaten you through someone else. The abuser can also be ordered not to possess any weapons.

The petitioner must show that family violence — physical abuse (pushing, shoving, slapping, hitting, kicking, choking, or any other act intended to cause physical harm) or the threat of imminent physical abuse (the person is able and likely to follow through) — has occurred and is likely to occur in the future. Mental abuse and emotional abuse are not part of the definition of family violence in the Texas Family Code.