Sutherland Shire Domestic Violence

18 Sutherland Shire Domestic Violence Informtion and Support Guide Leaving Domestic Violence Behind continued • Assist victims to locate and access support services. • Monitor repeat victims or perpetrators to coordinate responses from a variety of agencies, to reduce occurrences of violence. Domestic violence is a crime and should be reported to police. It is especially important to do so where a perpetrator has access to weapons. Reporting incidents of violence allows police to best support the safety of women and other family members, and can help victims access other supports to ensure their wellbeing. AVO’s and ADVO’s An ADVO or Apprehended Domestic Violence Order is applied by the court to ensure the protection of a person in a domestic or intimate relationship from future violence by a perpetrator. These orders are not criminal charges but can limit the behaviour of a perpetrator, including restricting where they can go, who they can contact, their ability to hold weapons and other aspects of family safety. Police can apply for an ADVO where violence, threats or harassment have occurred and there is a reasonable fear it will occur again. Police can also apply provisional ADVO orders on a perpetrator until the court hears the ADVO application. Breaching these orders is a criminal charge. Always notify police if a perpetrator breaches an ADVO. Individuals can also apply to the court for an AVO.