How can a restraining order stop someone from harassing or harming me or my family?

A restraining order can stop the person who is restrained or the respondent from harassing you or your family in several different ways, depending on your own unique set of circumstances. If you have children, for example, you can provide a copy of the restraining order to the children's schools, day cares, and other locations where they go, and the people who run that will know that the respondent is not allowed to come in there. Make contact with the children. Or remove them from the facility. Other than that, if a respondent really wants to violate an injunction, they will usually be able to, but what you need to keep in mind is that it's important to call the police immediately if someone does violate an injunction. They will be arrested and likely charged with a crime, and hopefully prevented from doing anything in the future. They can spend up to a year in jail.