What if the respondent is not arrested for violating the PPO?
As stated earlier, the police have the discretion to arrest or not arrest. If they do not arrest the respondent, you will have to file a “motion to show cause” with the circuit court to have a hearing about the PPO violation. A “show cause” hearing focuses on whether the respondent should be held in contempt of court for violating the PPO. This motion, like the original complaint, needs to document what the respondent did or said, as well as supporting witness statements, police reports, photographs, etc. If the judge believes that a violation may have occurred, he/she may schedule a show cause hearing and will issue a show cause order directing the respondent to appear in Court to answer the allegations that he/she violated the PPO. If the respondent denies that he violated the PPO, the court will set a hearing to take testimony from witnesses regarding the alleged violation. The prosecutor’s office may be involved in this hearing (see below).
