A new Ohio law expands civil protection orders to dating partners, bringing Ohio in line with every other state except Georgia.
Ohio law previously allowed spouses, cohabitants and parents to seek protection orders but excluded people who weren’t living together. House Bill 1, signed Thursday by Gov. John Kasich, expands the court orders to dating partners. It takes effect in early July.
The bill, sponsored by Democrat Rep. Emilia Sykes and Republican Rep. Nathan Manning, unanimously passed the Ohio House last year and cleared the Senate earlier this month. Sykes said the new law ensures dating partners statewide have an avenue to obtaining a protection order. Under previous Ohio law, some domestic relations courts granted protection orders to dating partners, but not all.
Sykes said there’s a misconception that protection orders are ineffective, in part because most people only hear about them when they don’t work.
“Protection orders are a very good and effective early intervention in domestic violence,” Sykes, an Akron Democrat, said in an interview. “They provide an opportunity to intervene into this relationship using the courts, using the authority of the law to say you need to remove yourself from this situation and stay away from this victim.”
Sykes said the bill also modernizes Ohio law to reflect changes in relationship patterns. Domestic violence is more common among 18- to 24-year-olds, she said, who may not be living together.
One in 4 women and 1 in 7 men will experience extreme physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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