Sexual aSSault LEGAL ADVOCACY MANUAL - Texas Association ...

No-Contact Orders as Conditions of Bond
Prosecutors in some jurisdictions hesitate or refuse to pursue sexual assault protective orders, fearing that
what happens during the civil proceeding could damage the criminal case against the perpetrator. And that
is a legitimate concern. If a survivor’s testimony at the criminal trial differs even slightly from the words
she or he spoke during the civil protective order hearing, the defense attorney will use the inconsistency
to challenge the survivor’s credibility. The criminal case obviously carries a much stronger punishment, so
sometimes it makes sense not to risk a conviction for the sake of a two-year protective order.
Nevertheless, the survivor still has real safety needs and should not have to choose between safety and
criminal justice. Therefore, some prosecutors have found a way around the problem, by insisting on nocontact
orders as conditions of bond in criminal cases.
Recall that bail is the court’s tool to ensure the defendant does not leave the jurisdiction during the
prosecution (p. 47, Bail). However, the victim also has the right to have the court consider her or his
safety when setting the bail amount under Tex. Code Crim. Proc. § 56.02(a)(2) (p. 28, CVR). Some
prosecutors in Texas have been successful in persuading courts to place restrictions on the defendant to
protect the survivor’s safety as part of the bail agreement. In most sexual assault cases, it is appropriate
to order the defendant to stay away from the survivor and not communicate with her or him during the
prosecution. Such an order is enforceable in the same way a protective order is, but there is no need for a
separate civil proceeding that could interfere with the civil case.
ADVOCACY ACTION: If local prosecutors do not want to pursue a sexual assault
protective order for a survivor, and there is a criminal case pending, advocate for a
no-contact order as a condition of the defendant’s bond. Of course, if the prosecutor is not
pursuing a criminal case, insist on following through on the civil protective order. Whatever
the circumstances, the survivor’s safety concerns must be the top priority.
Financial
Unfortunately, the aftermath of a sexual assault usually involves plenty of unplanned costs. Later chapters will
examine some specific costs that often arise, but for now it suffices to say that being a survivor is not cheap.
And, like privacy issues, financial problems can make survivors much more vulnerable to physical danger.
Consider, for example, a survivor who loses her job and her apartment following an attack by a stalker.
However, there are a few important avenues for many survivors to ease their financial burdens, in
addition to the economic counseling and safety planning they can receive at the local rape crisis center.
The first and easiest is the Texas Crime Victims’ Compensation program, administered by the Office of
the Attorney General. The second—more difficult and time-consuming—is a civil lawsuit for damages.
Finally, survivors in a few Texas communities may be able to participate in asset-building programs
known as “individual development accounts.”
Crime Victims’ Compensation
Essentially, the purpose of the Crime Victims’ Compensation program (“CVC”) is to put victims of crime
back in the financial position they were in before they were victimized. To that end, CVC will reimburse
a lot of the expenses survivors incur as a result of the crime. In addition, CVC is an example of how
financial issues can overlap with safety concerns: for example, the reimbursement provided by CVC can
be critical to a survivor’s safety measures, like relocating or obtaining legal assistance with completing the
CVC application.
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