Story originally printed in the Winona Daily News or online at www.winonadailynews.com
Published - Saturday, May 03, 2008
OFP used to start divorce proceedings
The order for protection needs to be looked at and changed.
I realize the system isn’t perfect and protective orders are meant to protect people from domestic violence. I am hearing too many stories about men and woman having these slanderous criminal charges filed against them simply because their other half wants them out of the house.
I thought that people were innocent until proven guilty.
These people have their hearts ripped out and lives torn apart. They are sent away with no chance to explain or defend themselves. It can become a costly and lengthy battle for these loving mothers and fathers to even see their children again.
Things are written in these orders whether they are true or not, can be proven or not just to make them “justified.”
In these cases, false charges are filed and are later dropped when the person served agrees to stay away and forced to follow through with the divorce. An OFP shouldn’t be used to start separation and divorce proceedings. I don’t believe this is what they were meant for. They are for someone who needs protection from the one causing them and/or their children harm.
Do the police and the court consider the person who is filing them? Are they the least bit curious about them? They could be drug dependent, mentally ill or abusive toward their children also.
I urge police and the courts to seriously observe this type of trend.
OFPs that are filed and then charges are dropped should be tallied and each one analyzed. Can there be a certain step before an OFP is filed? Instead of taxpayer dollars going to police to serve as marriage busters there must be a better way to handle this without tearing lives apart in the process.
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