Arkansas Code Annotated

Ark. Code Ann. § 5-53-134 (2026)

Violation of an order of protection

✓ current as of May 2026

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1. A person commits the offense of violation of an order of protection if:
  1. A circuit court or other court with competent jurisdiction has issued a temporary order of protection or an order of protection against the person pursuant to the Domestic Abuse Act of 1991, § 9-15-101 et seq.;
  2. The person has received actual notice or notice pursuant to the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure of a temporary order of protection or an order of protection pursuant to the Domestic Abuse Act of 1991, § 9-15-101 et seq.; and
  3. The person knowingly violates a condition of an order of protection issued pursuant to the Domestic Abuse Act of 1991, § 9-15-101 et seq.
2. A person commits the offense of violation of an out-of-state order of protection if:
  1. The court of another state, a federally recognized Indian tribe, or a territory with jurisdiction over the parties and matters has issued a temporary order of protection or an order of protection against the person pursuant to the laws or rules of the other state, federally recognized Indian tribe, or territory;
  2. The person has received actual notice or other lawful notice of a temporary order of protection or an order of protection pursuant to the laws or rules of the other state, the federally recognized Indian tribe, or the territory;
  3. The person knowingly violates a condition of an order of protection issued pursuant to the laws or rules of the other state, the federally recognized Indian tribe, or the territory; and
  4. The requirements of § 9-15-302 concerning the full faith and credit for an out-of-state order of protection have been met.
3. 1. A service member commits the offense of violation of a military order of protection if:
    1. The commanding general, a military judge, or a special courts-martial convening authority as authorized by § 12-64-406(b) issues a military order of protection against the service member;
    2. The service member receives actual notice or other lawful notice of the military order of protection as authorized under United States Department of Defense Instruction 6400.06, as it existed on January 1, 2017; and
    3. The service member knowingly violates a condition of the military order of protection.
  2. A prosecution against a service member for the offense of violation of a military order of protection does not prohibit the commanding general or military commander who issued the military order of protection from pursuing appropriate disciplinary action against the service member under the Military Code of Arkansas.
1. Except as provided in subdivision (b)(2) of this section, violation of an order of protection under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
2. Violation of an order of protection under this section is a Class D felony if:
  1. The offense is committed within five (5) years of a previous conviction for violation of an order of protection under this section; and
  2. The order of protection was issued after a hearing of which the person received actual notice and at which the person had an opportunity to participate.
1. A law enforcement officer may arrest and take into custody without a warrant a person whom the law enforcement officer has probable cause to believe:
  1. Is subject to an order of protection issued under the laws of this state; and
  2. Has violated the terms of the order of protection, even if the violation did not take place in the presence of the law enforcement officer.
2. Under § 9-15-302, a law enforcement officer or law enforcement agency may arrest and take into custody without a warrant a person whom the law enforcement officer or law enforcement agency has probable cause to believe:
  1. Is subject to:
    1. An order of protection issued under the laws or rules of another state, a federally recognized Indian tribe, or a territory; or
    2. A military order of protection; and
  2. Has violated the terms of the order of protection issued under the laws or rules of the other state, federally recognized Indian tribe, or territory, or the military order of protection, even if the violation did not take place in the presence of the law enforcement officer.
3. 1. If a service member is in the custody of a law enforcement agency as authorized in subdivision (c)(2) of this section, the law enforcement agency shall notify the office of the Adjutant General of the Arkansas National Guard within twenty-four (24) hours from the time the service member was placed in the custody of the law enforcement agency.
  2. 1. The Arkansas National Guard shall take custody of the service member within forty-eight (48) hours from the time the service member was placed in the custody of the law enforcement agency.
    2. However, if the Arkansas National Guard does not take custody of the service member as required by subdivision (c)(3)(B)(i) of this section, the law enforcement agency shall release the service member.
It is an affirmative defense to a prosecution under this section if:
1. The parties have reconciled prior to the violation of the order of protection;
2. The petitioner for the order of protection:
  1. Invited the defendant to come to the petitioner's residence or place of employment listed in the order of protection; and
  2. Knew that the defendant's presence at the petitioner's residence or place of employment would be in violation of the order of protection;
3. The petitioner for the order of protection arranged or invited the defendant into meeting at a location or took affirmative steps to communicate with the defendant with the promise that the petitioner would not report the defendant to law enforcement for violating the order of protection; or
4. The petitioner for the order of protection visited the residence or place of employment of the defendant on his or her own accord and without any threat, duress, or coercion on the part of the defendant.
Any law enforcement officer acting in good faith and exercising due care in making an arrest for domestic abuse in an effort to comply with this subchapter shall have immunity from civil or criminal liability.
As used in this section:
1. “Military order of protection” means an official command directed at a service member for the purpose of preventing violent and threatening acts against a person who:
  1. Is the current or former spouse of the service member;
  2. Is or was a child, step-child, parent, step-parent, sibling, guardian, or ward of the service member;
  3. Is residing or cohabitating or in the past has resided or cohabitated with the service member;
  4. Has or had a child in common with the service member;
  5. Is or has been in a dating relationship with the service member as defined by § 9-15-103;
  6. Has had an intimate sexual relationship with the service member; or
  7. Has made allegations against the service member of violations of the punitive article of sexual misconduct as defined by § 12-64-845; and
2. “Service member” means a person serving in:
  1. Any branch or reserve component of the United States Armed Forces; or
  2. The National Guard of any state.

History. Acts 1991, No. 267, § 1; 1991, No. 1236, § 1; 2003, No. 651, § 4; 2009, No. 331, § 1; 2011, No. 810, § 1; 2017, No. 515, §§ 1-3; 2019, No. 458, § 1; 2019, No. 905, § 1.

Amendments. The 2003 amendment redesignated former (a), (a)(1), (a)(2) and (a)(3) as present (a)(1), (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B) and (a)(1)(C) respectively; substituted “circuit” for “chancery” in present (a)(1)(A); added present (a)(2); inserted “under this section” in (b); inserted the present subdivision (c)(1), (c)(1)(A) and (c)(1)(B) designations; deleted “who the officer has probably cause to believe” from the beginning of present (c)(1)(B); added present (c)(2); and, in (e), inserted “in an effort to comply with this subchapter” and “or criminal.”

The 2009 amendment, in (b), inserted (b)(2), redesignated the remaining text accordingly, inserted “Except as provided in subdivision (b)(2) of this section” in (b)(1), and made related changes.

The 2011 amendment added (d)(2).

The 2017 amendment added (a)(3); added (c)(2)(A)(ii); in (c)(2)(B), deleted “out-of-state” preceding “order” and inserted “issued under the laws or rules of the other state, federally recognized Indian tribe, or territory, or the military order of protection”; added (c)(3); added (f); and made stylistic changes.

The 2019 amendment by No. 458 deleted (b)(2)(C).

The 2019 amendment by No. 905 deleted “or” following “protection” in (d)(1); and added (d)(3) and (d)(4).

Cross References. Filing cost for domestic violence charges or petitions, § 5-26-310, 9-15-202.

Full faith and credit for out-of-state protection orders, § 9-15-302.

Case Notes

Criminal Jurisdiction.

Trial court had no subject-matter jurisdiction to try defendant for the crime of violation of a protective order under § 9-15-207 because that statute did not describe a criminal offense, which was described in this section, and only provided a mechanism by which a person could obtain injunctive and equitable relief for protection against domestic abuse. Standridge v. State, 2014 Ark. 515, 452 S.W.3d 103 (2014).

Evidence Sufficient.

Evidence was sufficient to support a conviction for stalking and a violation of an order of protection because the content and timing of text messages connected them to defendant through circumstantial evidence; the messages contained a daughter's nickname, names of people of whom defendant was jealous, and references to reconciliation with defendant's former wife. Moreover, one message was sent immediately after defendant was served with an order of protection. Brawner v. State, 2013 Ark. App. 413, 428 S.W.3d 600 (2013).

Evidence was sufficient to support defendant's conviction of violation of a protection order based on his “tagging” his children in several Facebook posts; the evidence showed that defendant was an experienced social media user, defendant's daughter testified that defendant had to take affirmative steps in order to tag her and her brother in his posts, the daughter and a detective testified that it would be visibly apparent that defendant was tagging his children in the social media posts, and the detective opined that defendant's actions were an intentional form of communication and not an accident or a mistake. Adams v. State, 2020 Ark. App. 107 (2020).

Cited: West v. State, 82 Ark. App. 165, 120 S.W.3d 100 (2003); Standridge v. State, 2012 Ark. App. 563, 423 S.W.3d 677 (2012).

Subchapter 2 — Threatening a Judicial Official or Juror

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 9 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 2003–2022 · leading case: Standridge v. State, 2014 Ark. 515 (Ark. 2014).

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Standridge v. State, 2014 Ark. 515 (Ark. 2014). · cites it 70× “2009), rather than the criminal-code provision for violation of a protection order found at Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-53-134 (Supp. 2013). To understand our decision, it is first necessary to describe the respective statutes.”

Kevin R. Adams v. State of Arkansas, 2020 Ark. App. 107 (Ark. Ct. App. 2020). · cites it 4× “Thereafter, appellant was arrested and charged with three counts of violation of a protection order in violation of Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-53-134 (Supp. 2019), a Class A misdemeanor.”

Standridge v. State, 423 S.W.3d 677 (Ark. Ct. App. 2012). · cites it 4× “In order to commit the crime of violating an order of protection, (1) an order of protection must exist, (2) a person must have had notice of the order, and (3) the person must have knowingly violated a condition of the order.”

Standridge v. State, 2014 Ark. 515 (Ark. 2014). · cites it 35× “2009), rather than the criminal-code provision for violation of a protection order found at Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-53-134 (Supp. 2013). To understand our decision, it is first necessary to describe the respective statutes.”

Brawner v. State, 428 S.W.3d 600 (Ark. Ct. App. 2013). · cites it 2× “Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-53-134 (Repl.2005) provides: (а)(1) A person commits the offense of a violation of an order of protection if: (A) A circuit court or other court with competent jurisdiction has issued a temporary order of protection or an order of protection…”

West v. State, 120 S.W.3d 100 (Ark. Ct. App. 2003). · cites it 2× “” Ark. Code Ann. § 5-53-134 (a) (Repl. 1997).”

Hobbs v. Reynolds, 289 S.W.3d 917 (Ark. 2008). “On September 4, 2007, Hobbs was charged by misdemeanor information with a violation of order of protection, a violation of Arkansas Code Annotated § 5-53-134 (Supp. 2005), and a Class A misdemeanor, in the Faulkner County Circuit Court.”

Randy Mitchell v. State of Arkansas, 2022 Ark. App. 219 (Ark. Ct. App. 2022). · cites it 2× “He claimed that Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-53-134 required an order of protection to be served in accordance with Rule 5 of the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure in order for appellant to be found in violation of the order of protection.”

Sullivan v. State, 2014 Ark. App. 54 (Ark. Ct. App. 2014). “§ 5-4 - 401(a)(5) and § 5-53-134, the State is presumably contending that appellant violated the condition that he not “commit a criminal offense punishable by imprisonment.”

— Ark. Code Ann. § 5-53-134(b)(2)(B) — 2 cases

Standridge v. State, 2014 Ark. 515 (Ark. 2014). “2009), rather than the criminal-code provision for violation of a protection order found at Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-53-134 (Supp. 2013). To understand our decision, it is first necessary to describe the respective statutes.”

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