EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
Underlining indicates amendments to bill.
Strike out indicates matter stricken from the bill by amendment or deleted from the law by
amendment.
*hb0745*
HOUSE BILL 745
D4 4lr3148
CF SB 743
By: Delegates Shetty, Bartlett, Kaufman, and Simpson Simpson, Crutchfield,
Arikan, Grammer, Valentine, and Williams
Introduced and read first time: January 31, 2024
Assigned to: Judiciary
Committee Report: Favorable with amendments
House action: Adopted
Read second time: March 7, 2024
CHAPTER ______
AN ACT concerning 1
Family Law – Protective Orders – Crimes of Violence and Stalking and 2
Permanent Protective Orders 3
FOR the purpose of adding stalking to the list of offenses for which a certain individual 4
may petition for a protective order expanding the definition of “person eligible for 5
relief” under the domestic violence statutes to include an individual who alleges that 6
the respondent committed stalking under certain circumstances; altering certain 7
provisions of law relating to the issuance of a permanent protective order; and 8
generally relating to protective orders. 9
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 10
Article – Family Law 11
Section 4–501(m) 12
Annotated Code of Maryland 13
(2019 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 14
BY repealing 15
Article – Family Law 16
Section 4–506(k) 17
Annotated Code of Maryland 18
(2019 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 19
BY adding to 20
Article – Family Law 21 2 HOUSE BILL 745
Section 4–506(k) 1
Annotated Code of Maryland 2
(2019 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 3
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 4
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 5
Article – Family Law 6
4–501. 7
(m) “Person eligible for relief” includes: 8
(1) the current or former spouse of the respondent; 9
(2) a cohabitant of the respondent; 10
(3) a person related to the respondent by blood, marriage, or adoption; 11
(4) a parent, stepparent, child, or stepchild of the respondent or the person 12
eligible for relief who resides or resided with the respondent or person eligible for relief for 13
at least 90 days within 1 year before the filing of the petition; 14
(5) a vulnerable adult; 15
(6) an individual who has a child in common with the respondent; 16
(7) an individual who has had a sexual relationship with the respondent 17
within 1 year before the filing of the petition; and 18
(8) an individual who alleges that the respondent committed, within 6 19
months before the filing of the petition, any of the following acts against the individual: 20
(i) rape or a sexual offense under § 3–303, § 3–304, § 3–307, or § 21
3–308 of the Criminal Law Article; [or] 22
(ii) attempted rape or sexual offense in any degree; OR 23
(III) STALKING UNDER § 3–802 OF THE CRIMINAL LAW ARTICLE. 24
4–506. 25
[(k) (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the court shall 26
issue a permanent protective order under this subsection against an individual if: 27
(i) an interim, temporary, or final protective order has been issued 28
under this subtitle against the individual; 29 HOUSE BILL 745 3
(ii) 1. the individual was convicted and sentenced to serve a term 1
of imprisonment of at least 5 years for the act of abuse that led to the issuance of the 2
interim, temporary, or final protective order and the individual has served at least 12 3
months of the sentence; or 4
2. A. during the term of the interim, temporary, or final 5
protective order, the individual committed an act of abuse against the person eligible for 6
relief; and 7
B. the individual was convicted and sentenced to serve a term 8
of imprisonment of at least 5 years for the act and has served at least 12 months of the 9
sentence; and 10
(iii) the victim of the act of abuse described in item (ii)1 or 2 of this 11
paragraph, who was the person eligible for relief in the interim, temporary, or final 12
protective order, requests the issuance of a permanent protective order under this 13
subsection. 14
(2) In a permanent protective order issued under this subsection, the court 15
may grant only the relief that was granted in the original protective order under § 16
4–504.1(c)(1) or (2) or § 4–505(a)(2)(i) or (ii) of this subtitle or subsection (d)(1) or (2) of this 17
section. 18
(3) Unless terminated at the request of the victim, a protective order issued 19
under this subsection shall be permanent.] 20
(K) (1) NOTWITHSTANDING ANY O THER PROVISION OF TH IS SECTION, 21
THE COURT SHALL ISSU E A PERMANENT PROTECTIVE ORDER UND ER THIS 22
SUBSECTION AGAINST A N INDIVIDUAL IF: 23
(I) AN INTERIM, TEMPORARY , OR FINAL PROTECTIVE ORDER 24
HAS BEEN ISSUED UNDE R THIS SUBTITLE AGAI NST THE INDIVIDUAL ; 25
(II) THE INDIVIDUAL WAS C ONVICTED OF EITHER A CRIME OF 26
VIOLENCE, AS DEFINED IN § 14–101 OF THE CRIMINAL LAW ARTICLE, OR STALKING 27
UNDER § 3–802 OF THE CRIMINAL LAW ARTICLE FOR THE ACT O F ABUSE THAT LED 28
TO THE ISSUANCE OF T HE INTERIM, TEMPORARY , OR FINAL PROTECTIVE ORDER 29
FOR AN ACT OF ABUSE AGAINST THE PERSON E LIGIBLE FOR RELIEF; AND 30
(III) THE VICTIM OF THE AC T OF ABUSE DESCRIBED IN ITEM (II) 31
OF THIS PARAGRAPH , WHO WAS THE PERSON E LIGIBLE FOR RELIEF I N THE INTERIM, 32
TEMPORARY , OR FINAL PROTECTIVE ORDER, REQUESTS ISSUANCE OF A PERMANENT 33
PROTECTIVE ORDER . 34
4 HOUSE BILL 745
(2) IN A PERMA NENT PROTECTIVE ORDE R ISSUED UNDER THIS 1
SUBSECTION, THE COURT MAY GRANT ONLY THE RELIEF THAT WAS GRANTED IN THE 2
ORIGINAL PROTECTIVE ORDER UNDER § 4–504.1(C)(1) OR (2) OR § 4–505(A)(2)(I) 3
OR (II) OF THIS SUBTITLE OR SUBSECTION (D)(1) OR (2) OF THIS SECTION. 4
(3) UNLESS TERMINATED AT THE REQUEST OF THE V ICTIM, A 5
PROTECTIVE ORDER ISS UED UNDER THIS SUBSE CTION SHALL BE PERMA NENT. 6
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect 7
October 1, 2024. 8
Approved:
________________________________________________________________________________
Governor.
________________________________________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Delegates.
________________________________________________________________________________
President of the Senate.