Permanent Restraining Order Against Former Church Member Turned Harassing Vandal

December 2024

After obtaining a temporary restraining order on an ex parte basis, we obtained a permanent restraining order for a leader of a religious organization and his wife who were repeatedly harassed by a former member of the congregation. Such an order may issue only on clear and convincing evidence of (1) a knowing and willful course of conduct; (2) directed at a specific person; (3) which seriously alarms, annoys, or harasses the person; (4) which serves no legitimate purpose; (5) which would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress and actually causes substantial emotional distress; and (6) which is not a constitutionally protected activity. (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 527.6(b); E.G. v. M.L. (2024) 105 Cal.App.5th 688, 699.) The harassment in our client’s case included threatening texts, phone calls, and emails to the leader and his religious organization, defamatory online “reviews” of the leader’s private business, and vandalism of the leader’s vehicle. The restraining order issued by the court prohibits any contact with the leader or his wife by telephone, writing, email, text, or social media. It also specifically prohibits any harassment, intimidation, threats, or damage to the leader’s personal property. Our client has been free from any further harassment since we obtained the order on his behalf.