|
Louisiana Protective
Order Registry (LPOR) |
OVERVIEW OF THE LOUISIANA
PROTECTIVE ORDER REGISTRY
In 1997, legislation was passed (La. R.S. 46:2136.2) which created the Louisiana Protective
Order Registry (LPOR) and named the Judicial Administrator’s Office of the Louisiana Supreme
Court as the entity responsible for the development and maintenance of this computerized
database.
The Louisiana Protective Order Registry is a statewide repository for court orders issued for the
purpose of preventing harassing, threatening, or violent acts against a spouse, intimate
cohabitant, dating partner, family or household member. In addition to developing and
maintaining the database, the Judicial Administrator’s Office is responsible for creating and
disseminating standardized order forms, called Uniform Abuse Prevention Order forms. All
courts are mandated to use these standardized forms.
The LPOR was officially launched in April, 1999, when the database was completed and the
initial version of the standardized forms was ready for release. Since that time, the registry has
provided training seminars across the state to explain how the registry works, highlight relevant
state and federal laws, and disseminate the standardized forms and interactive software. These
seminars are designed for, but not limited to, judges, magistrates, commissioners, hearing
officers, judicial administrators, clerks of court, other court personnel, prosecutors, probation and
parole officers, law enforcement personnel, victim assistance providers, victim advocates, legal
services providers, and attorneys.
As of October 30, 2011 there were 250,945 orders in the registry. Of this total, approximately 76% of the orders were civil and 24% of the orders were criminal. A breakdown by order type appears below.
190,175 civil orders, including:
60,770 criminal orders, including:
- Bail restrictions
- Peace bonds
- Combined bail restrictions/peace bond
- Combined sentencing orders/probation conditions
Access to information in the registry
Project Partners
How the registry works
The benefits of having a statewide protective
order registry
Access to information in the
registry
According to La. R.S. 46:2136.2, “the Judicial Administrator’s Office shall make the Louisiana
Protective Order Registry available to state and local law enforcement agencies, district attorney
offices, the Department of Social Services, office of family support, support enforcement
services, office of community services, the Department of Health and Hospitals, bureau of
protective services, the Governor’s Office of Elderly Affairs, elderly protective services, the
office of the attorney general, and the courts.”
Law enforcement officials can perform a name-based search of the registry for active orders as
part of a routine background or warrant check, if they use a terminal licensed by the Louisiana
Department of Public Safety and Corrections/State Police. If an order is in the registry and is
active, the search will yield a summary of the order’s terms and conditions. The official
conducting the search can also request a fax-back copy of the scanned order.
In addition to law enforcement officials, judges, prosecutors, probation personnel and the
attorney general can obtain information from the registry for consideration in domestic violence,
sexual assault, and stalking cases. For courts and all other eligible users access is available
through a direct link to the registry or via dial-in to the CMIS Metro Server. To obtain this type
of access, the entity must apply through the CMIS Division of the Judicial Administrator’s
Office of the Louisiana Supreme Court and enter into a Cooperative Endeavor Agreement.
Louisiana State Police officials can search the registry when an individual applies for a
concealed weapon permit. Examiners with the FBI’s National Instant Background Check
System (NICS) can access our state’s protective orders through the National Crime Information
Center (NCIC), because the registry transmits qualifying orders to this national database, as well.
This means that those subjects of a protective order, who are prohibited under federal law from
possessing, purchasing, transporting, or selling a firearm or ammunition during the period of the
order, can be denied a weapon, when they submit an application for purchase through a licensed
firearms dealer. See Access page.
Project Partners
The Louisiana Protective Order Registry (LPOR) has a number
of project partners.
- The Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement (LCLE) continues to provide substantial
financial support for the registry through federal National Criminal History Improvement
Program (NCHIP)/Crime Information Technology Act (CITA) funds and Violence Against
Women Act (VAWA) subgrant funds.
- The Telecommunications Division of the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and
Corrections/State Police works closely with project staff to maintain the necessary links
between the registry, the state’s computerized Criminal History Records (CHR) database,
and the National Crime Information Center’s (NCIC) Protection Order File (POF) database.
- The LPOR Steering Committee, comprised of representatives from various statewide
organizations and associations, along with experts in the field of domestic violence, meets
quarterly to provide ongoing project direction and guidance.
- Courts continue to provide valuable feedback and suggestions for improvement, as the
registry evolves and forms are revised to track changes in state and federal laws.
How
the registry works
The original set of standardized forms has grown to include forty-two (42) forms in the current
version 6.1. Created to be used in conjunction with the registry, these forms include two subsets.
Forms LPOR A through Z are courtesy forms. Their use is optional rather than mandatory, and
the completed forms are not transmitted to the registry by the clerk of court. This subset
includes instructions, petitions, motions and other related forms.
The second subset, LPOR 1 through 20-R, comprises the Louisiana Uniform Abuse Prevention
Order forms. Their use is mandatory, when an order of protection is issued by a court within the
state. The law provides that the judge “shall cause to have prepared” the standardized order
form and that the clerk of court shall transmit the filed order to the registry by fax, mail, or
courier as expeditiously as possible, but no later than the close of business the day after the order
is filed.
When the order is received by the Judicial Administrator’s Office, an image of the order is
scanned and saved. The information contained in the order is manually entered into the registry
by a data input clerk. When entered, the information can be searched by authorized users, such
as courts, prosecution agencies, probation and parole agencies, law enforcement agencies, the
Department of Social Services, the Department of Health and Hospitals and the attorney
general’s office. When an order expires at midnight on the date of expiration, it is automatically
removed from the searchable database and is archived.
The benefits of having a statewide
protective order registry
- The full spectrum of relief available under Louisiana law is incorporated into the Louisiana
Uniform Abuse Prevention Order forms, making it more likely that victims and their children
will receive the types of relief they require.
- Instant access to protective order information appears to have improved the response to
domestic violence incidents and enhanced safety, not only for the victims and their children,
but also for the responding officer(s).
- Several national studies have demonstrated that the more specific the terms and conditions of
a protective order, the greater the likelihood the order will be enforced. Therefore, we
believe that the use of standardized order forms, which clearly spell out the terms and
conditions of the order, has enhanced enforcement. In turn, better enforcement of protection
orders can only increase protection for victims and their children.
- The entry of protection orders into a centralized database has increased the enforcement of
orders across jurisdictional lines both within and outside of the state.
- Maintaining a statewide centralized database of protection orders, both civil and criminal,
makes it possible to prohibit an individual who is the subject of such an order from
purchasing a gun or qualifying for a permit to carry a concealed weapon, during the period of
the order.
The
Louisiana Protective Order Registry is a project of
the Office of the Judicial Administrator, Supreme Court of
Louisiana
|
