Amicus joined in the Illinois Appellate Court
Chicago Appleseed joined an amicus brief in Sanchez v Torres, in the Appellate Court of Illinois. We joined with Loyola University Civitas ChildLaw Center, the Chicago Metropolitan Battered Women’s Network, the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, the John Marshall Law School Domestic Violence Clinical Advocacy Program, Chicago Volunteer Legal Services and LifeSpan Center for Legal Services & Advocacy in signing the brief. The brief was prepared by the Domestic Violence Legal Empowerment and Appeals Project of the George Washington University Law School and attorneys at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP.
At issue in the case is a Circuit Court action contrary to a provision of the Illinois Domestic Violence Act (IDVA), providing for a mandatory order of protection upon a factual showing of abuse. 750 ILCS 60/214(a). After two factual hearings, the court found petitioner’s allegations of abuse to be credible and yet denied her request for an order of protection, pursuant to the IDVA, issuing a restraining order instead.
The brief makes the argument that this is an impermissible exercise of discretion where the statute states that “[i]f the court finds that petitioner has been abused by a family or household member . . . , an order of protection prohibiting the abuse . . . shall issue.” 750 ILCS 60/214(a).
Additionally, the brief explains in detail the difference between the two remedies and why the restraining order is a poor substitute for the order of protection. Orders of protection are readily enforceable through immediate arrest; whereas civil restraining orders can only be enforced through a return to court and additional litigation. The IDVA’s provision for mandatory orders of protection demonstrates the intent of legislators to improve the safety and well-being of the people who seek protection under the Act. The brief argues this intent was subverted through the Circuit Court’s action.