JOSEPH T. AMBREFE, JR., APPELLANT,
v.
DENISE RIZZO AMBREFE, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Joseph Ambrefe appeals a final judgment granting an injunction for protection against domestic violence filed by his wife, Denise. The appellate court reversed, holding that the trial court lacked sufficient evidence of imminent danger of domestic violence as required by Florida statute and abused its discretion in issuing the injunction based on unrelated concerns about parental conduct.
The appellate court reversed and remanded, holding that the trial court abused its discretion by issuing the injunction without the requisite evidence of imminent danger of domestic violence. The court's concerns about the parents' use of the child to work out marital issues were irrelevant to the statutory inquiry and could not support an injunction under section 741.30(6)(a).
[1] A court may issue an injunction for protection against domestic violence only when the petitioner demonstrates reasonable cause to believe they are in imminent danger of…
[2] A trial court abuses its discretion by entering an injunction for protection against domestic violence when the requisite evidence of imminent danger is lacking.
Previewing 2 of 3 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“A court may issue an injunction when it appears that the petitioner is either the victim of domestic violence or "has reasonable cause to believe he or she is in imminent danger of becoming a victim of domestic violence."”
Establishes the statutory requirement for issuance of a domestic violence injunction under Florida law
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceDenise Rizzo Ambrefe filed a petition for an injunction for protection against domestic violence against her husband, Joseph Ambrefe, Jr., citing conc…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Reasonable Cause To Believe In Imminent Danger cases and more on FLexlaw
WHATLEY, Judge.
Joseph T. Ambrefe, Jr., appeals the final judgment of injunction against domestic violence with child entered after his wife, Denise Rizzo Ambrefe, filed a petition seeking same. We reverse.
Section 741.30, Florida Statutes (2007), creates a cause of action for an injunction for protection against domestic violence. A court may issue an injunction when it appears that the petitioner is either the victim of domestic violence or “has reasonable cause to believe he or she is in imminent danger of becoming a victim of domestic violence.” § 741.30(6)(a). At the hearing in this case, the trial court entered the injunction after stating the following:
My concern, of course, right now is whether there’s an immediate threat of harm or danger, and if he’s [Mr. Am-brefe] gone a lot, then it doesn’t sound like that that’s necessarily something that’s right there at the forefront. But the circumstances surrounding, you know, this dysfunction that occurred during the — right after the cartoon watching and before the prelude to the yard work concerns me that the parents are using the child to work out whatever unresolved issues they have. And that’s — it just didn’t get any more wrong than that. And I’m not finding fault with either party.... I’m going to grant the injunction....
The trial court began its statement focused on the proper inquiry of whether Mrs. Ambrefe had presented sufficient evidence that she had a reasonable fear that she and her son were in imminent danger of domestic violence by Mr. Ambrefe. The court essentially found a lack of evidence of imminent danger, and this finding is supported by the testimony at the hearing. The court abused its discretion in entering the injunction when the requisite evidence was lacking. See Oettmeier v. Oettmeier, 960 So. 2d 902 (Fla. 2d DCA 2007); Moore v. Hall, 786 So. 2d 1264 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001). The court’s belief that the parents were improperly using the child to work out their marital issues is irrelevant to the inquiry required by section 741.30(6)(a).
Accordingly, we reverse and remand with directions to the trial court to vacate the injunction.
SILBERMAN and LaROSE, JJ., Concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Achurra v. Achurra, 80 So. 3d 1080 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012)…1st DCA 2009) (revised opinion on motions for withdrawal of opinion, clarification, reh’g, or reh’g en banc). Mrs. Achurra, the petitioner, had the initial burden to prove entitlement to relief. § 741.30(l)(a), Fla. Stat. (2010); Ambrefe v. Ambrefe, 993 So. 2d 98, 98-99 (Fla. 2d DCA 2008). She presented no evidence, however, at the petition hearing. So far as we can tell, the trial court never received and considered a copy of the transcript of [*1083] the April 13 proceedings of which it agreed to take judi…
-
Jones v. Jones, 32 So. 3d 772 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010)…e.1 “A court may issue an injunction when it appears that the petitioner is either the victim of domestic violence or ‘has reasonable cause to believe he or she is in imminent danger of becoming a victim of domestic violence.’ ” Ambrefe v. Ambrefe, 993 So. 2d 98, 98 (Fla. 2d DCA 2008) (quoting § 741.30(1)(a), Fla. Stat. (2007)). In determining whether the victim’s fear is reasonable, “the trial court must consider the current allegations, the parties’ behavior within the relationship, and the history of the…
-
Weisberg v. Albert, 123 So. 3d 663 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013)…njunction when the petitioner has established that he or she is “either the victim of domestic violence or ‘has reasonable cause to believe he or she is in imminent danger of becoming a victim of domestic violence.’ ” Id. (citing Ambrefe v. Ambrefe, 993 So. 2d 98, 98 (Fla. 2d DCA 2008) (quoting section 741.30(l)(a), Fla. Stat. (2007))). “Domestic violence” is defined as “any assault,2 aggravated assault, battery ... or any criminal offense resulting in physical injury or death of one family or household memb…
Previewing 3 of 6 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Oettmeier v. Oettmeier, 960 So. 2d 902 (Fla. 2d DCA 2007)
- Moore v. Hall, 786 So. 2d 1264 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001)