ROBERT LEE RANDOLPH, APPELLANT,
v.
PHILICIA CORINE RICH, APPELLEE
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The court held that the evidence presented was legally insufficient to support the issuance of an injunction for protection against domestic violence.
[1] A party seeking an injunction for protection against domestic violence must establish an objectively reasonable fear of imminent danger of domestic violence.
[2] Evidence of generalized relationship problems and uncivil behavior is insufficient to support the issuance of a domestic violence injunction.
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Appellant, Robert Lee Randolph, seeks review of the final judgment of injunction for protection against domestic violence entered against him based upon the petition of his former wife, and current next door neighbor,1 Philicia Corine Rich. We reverse because the evidence presented at the hearing on the petition was legally insufficient to support the injunction.
In order for the trial court to issue an injunction for protection against domestic violence, the party seeking the injunction must establish that he or she has an objectively reasonable fear that he or she is in “imminent danger of becoming the victim of any act of domestic violence.” § 741.30(l)(a), Fla. Stat. (2010); see also Moore v. Hall, 786 So.2d 1264, 1266 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001); Gustafson v. Mauck, 743 So.2d 614, 615 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999). In evaluating these issues, the trial court must consider the behavior of the party against whom the injunction is sought in the context of the current threats and the parties’ relationship and its history. See Gustafson, 743 So.2d at 616.
Here, the focus of the petition and the evidence at the hearing was on an incident between the parties at their child’s school on August 26, 2010. On the day of the incident, Ms. Rich was involved in a conversation with the director of the after school program when Mr. Randolph arrived to pick up the parties’ child. Mr. Randolph approached the women and attempted to snatch some papers out of Ms. Rich’s hands. Mr. Randolph did not get the papers and he was told by the program director to leave the school, which he did. Although there was testimony that Mr. Randolph touched the papers that Ms. Rich was holding, there was no evidence that he physically touched her. And, although Ms. Rich testified that she felt threatened by the encounter, there was no evidence of any verbal threats made by Mr. Randolph during the incident.
This incident is insufficient to support the injunction, even when considered within the context of the parties’ relationship. At the hearing, Ms. Rich made passing reference to domestic violence occurring during the parties’ marriage, but the record does not reflect the nature or extent of *292the violence.2 Ms. Rich also testified that, since their divorce, Mr. Randolph “repeatedly” harassed her by telephone and email, but the only specific testimony on that issue concerned an August 19, 2009 voicemail and an August 25, 2010 email. Ms. Rich testified that in the voicemail, Mr. Randolph threatened to “get [her]” and “devote all of his time to getting [her].” When asked by the trial court how she interpreted the voicemail, Ms. Rich testified that Mr. Randolph had “physically gotten [her] in the past” and that she did not know what he was going to do.3 The email, which was addressed to both Ms. Rich and her current husband, concerned the parties’ child and did not contain any threats.
Mr. Randolph acknowledged in his testimony that the parties’ interactions are not cordial, and it is clear from the parties’ testimony that they have an unpleasant relationship. The acrimonious nature of the parties’ relationship is supported by the record, which reflects that there have been four previous petitions for domestic violence injunction filed by the parties (three by Ms. Rich and one by Mr. Randolph), all of which were dismissed. While a petitioner does not have to wait for abuse to occur in order to seek an injunction under section 741.30, Florida Statutes, see Gustafson, 743 So.2d at 616, the law requires more than general relationship problems and uncivil behavior to support the issuance of an injunction. See Gill, supra (“[Generalized threats to engage in unpleasant, but not violent, behavior are not sufficient to support the issuance of a domestic violence injunction.”); Oettmeier v. Oettmeier, 960 So.2d 902, 904 (Fla. 2d DCA 2007) (reversing domestic violence injunction where evidence merely “painted ... a typical, albeit unfortunate, picture of a domestic relationship gone awry”). Rather, the law requires that the party seeking the injunction must present sufficient evidence to establish the objective reasonableness of his or her fear that the danger of violence is “imminent.” Such evidence was lacking here.
Accordingly, we reverse the final judgment and remand with directions that the trial court vacate the injunction entered against Mr. Randolph.
REVERSED and REMANDED with directions.
BENTON, C.J., PADOVANO and WETHERELL, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By (16 total)
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Young v. Young, 96 So. 3d 478 (Fla. 1st DCA 2012)…lence requires malicious harassment that consists at the very least of some threat of imminent violence, which excludes mere uncivil behavior that causes distress or annoyance. See Power v. Boyle, 60 So. 3d 496 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011); Randolph v. Rich, 58 So. 3d 290 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011); Gustafson v. Mauck, 743 So. 2d 614 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999); Young v. Smith, 901 So. 2d 372 (Fla. 2d DCA 2005); Giallanza v. Giallanza, 787 So. 2d 162 (Fla.2d DCA 2001). Ms. Young used her husband’s email in an inappropriate manner b…
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Wills v. Rashida Wills Jones, 213 So. 3d 982 (Fla. 1st DCA 2016)…unt to the type of uncivil conduct that while causing distress and annoyance is legally insufficient to justify intervention by the court system (along with the collateral consequences of injunctions against domestic violence). See Randolph v. Rich, 58 So. 3d 290, 292 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011) (“the law requires more than general relationship problems and uncivil behavior to support the issuance of an injunction”); see also Jones v. Jackson, 67 So. 3d 1203, 1203-04 (Fla. 2d DCA 2011) (receipt of allegedly intimida…
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Iraelio Alcolea Leal v. Orielyn Diaz Rodriguez, 220 So. 3d 543 (Fla. 3d DCA 2017)…tic violence, in sum, “requires some showing of violence or a threat of violence.” Young v. Smith, 901 So. 2d 372, 373 (Fla. 2d DCA 2005). General harassment, general relationship problems, and uncivil behavior are not enough. Id.; Randolph v. Rich, 58 So. 3d 290, 292 (Fla. 1st DCA 2011). “In determining whether a petitioner has reasonable cause to believe he or she is in imminent danger of becoming a victim of domestic violence, the court shall consider and evaluate,” among other factors, “[t]he history be…
Previewing 3 of 16 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Gill v. Gill, 50 So. 3d 772 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010)
- Gustafson v. Mauck, 743 So. 2d 614 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999)
- Oettmeier v. Oettmeier, 960 So. 2d 902 (Fla. 2d DCA 2007)
- Moore v. Hall, 786 So. 2d 1264 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001)