What Happens After Violating an Idaho No-Contact Order

Attorney Answer

Stop all contact right now, and do not try to explain this to anyone but your own lawyer — each contact is a separate crime, and her agreement to talk is not a defense.

Idaho Code § 18-920 makes it a distinct criminal offense to have contact with a protected person in violation of a no-contact order issued in an assault, battery, or domestic violence case. A first or second violation is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $1,000. A third violation within five years is a felony, punishable by up to five years and a fine of up to $5,000, and no bond may be set on that charge until the person is brought before the court. The statute also expressly provides that a violation may result in the increase, revocation, or modification of the bond set in the underlying charge. That last point is the one people underestimate: the immediate risk is not only a new case, it is losing your release on the case you already have.

Understand whose order this is. The no-contact order was entered by the court, not by your girlfriend. She cannot waive it, consent to contact, or call it off, and the fact that she answered or initiated the contact does not make the contact lawful. Only the judge can change the order, and the only lawful way to have contact is to ask the court to modify it first.

Her attorney knowing is significant. Expect that information to reach the prosecutor, and expect a motion regarding your bond or release conditions. That process can move quickly, which is why the next few days matter.

What you can do

1. Cut off contact completely, starting now. That includes calls, texts, social media of any kind, and messages passed through friends or family. Contact through a third party is still contact. 2. Do not delete anything. Deleting messages does not remove them — she has them, and her attorney apparently has them — and destroying evidence can add a separate charge and will be read as consciousness of guilt. 3. Do not explain yourself to her lawyer, to the prosecutor, or to police. Anything you say to justify the contact is an admission that the contact happened. If you are contacted, say you want a lawyer and stop there. 4. Call your defense attorney today if you have one, or apply for a public defender if you do not. Tell them the full extent of the contact before they hear it from the other side; a surprise at a bond hearing is much worse than a bad fact they were ready for. 5. Ask your lawyer to prepare for a bond review, since § 18-920 expressly allows a violation to trigger increase, revocation, or modification of your bond. 6. If you and she both genuinely want contact restored, have your lawyer file a motion to modify the no-contact order. That is the only route that works, and courts do sometimes grant it — but only in advance, never retroactively. 7. Change the practical conditions that make violations happen: block the number, mute the accounts, and stay away from places you know she goes. Judges notice the difference between someone who stopped and someone who says he will.