State Supreme Court standardizes domestic violence paperwork

Thursday, April 27, 2000 | 10:07 a.m.

Justices took the step after being told of problems in enforcing protective orders because of confusing differences in court paperwork, especially in communities on or near Nevada's borders with other states.

Veronica Boyd-Frenkel, the state's domestic violence ombudsman, said Nevada, by standardizing forms used in Justice Court and District Court proceedings, joins about a dozen other states that have done the same.

Chief Justice Bob Rose said the move should help to ensure consistent enforcement in such cases - a vital goal.

The changes had been recommended by a 20-member panel headed by Washoe District Judge Scott Jordan and Sue Meuschke, executive director of the Nevada Network Against Domestic Violence.

The high court, in addition to standardizing seven forms used in state courts in domestic violence cases, also told the panel to continue working on ways to get uniformity in other paperwork in such cases.

Several thousand temporary protective orders, or TPOs, are issued every year in Nevada, mostly in the Las Vegas area.

Other efforts on protective orders include a Clark County move last year to speed up the process for getting the orders. The speed-up followed the slaying of a woman by her lover shortly after she applied for and got a TPO.

And a panel has been reviewing all fatalities in the Las Vegas area stemming from domestic violence. The goal is to determine where the system that is supposed to protect domestic violence victims is breaking down.

Also, Boyd-Frenkel and the Nevada attorney general's office have proposed training techniques for hairdressers that will teach them to spot signs of abuse.

Boyd-Frenkel wants beauty schools to put up posters in restrooms and stickers on mirrors that have the state's helpline for domestic violence - 1-800-500-1556.