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House backs bill adding device-related stalking definition and option for accountability programs in protection orders
Summary
H.222 would expand definitions of stalking to include device-based surveillance, add temporary vehicle possession to relief available in protection orders, and allow courts to require completion of domestic violence accountability programs; the House ordered third reading after committee amendments.
The Vermont House on Wednesday advanced H.222, an act that would change how courts handle certain civil protection orders by (1) clarifying that device-based stalking can meet the statutory "course of conduct" requirement, (2) allowing courts to award temporary possession of a vehicle to a victim in a relief-from-abuse order, and (3) authorizing courts to require defendants to complete a domestic violence accountability program (DVAP) as a condition of a relief-from-abuse order.
Representative Arsenal, member from Williston and the Judiciary Committee speaker on the bill, told the chamber H.222 "revises Vermont's civil protection order statutes to provide better relief to victims of domestic violence, sexual violence and stalking." He said device-related stalking — for example, one-time placement of a tracking device used to continuously surveil — has presented challenges under the existing "course of conduct" definition and that H.222 would clarify that misuse of electronic or geolocation devices can satisfy the conduct requirement.
The bill would add temporary possession of a vehicle to the list of remedies a court may order when issuing a relief-from-abuse order, noting that a vehicle can be a critical lifeline for a victim attempting to leave an abusive situation. It would also allow a court to require completion of a domestic violence accountability program approved by the Vermont Council on Domestic Violence; failure to complete that program would not be a criminal offense but could be addressed through civil contempt and could be considered in later custody or extension decisions.
Supporters noted that the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Commission recommended adding DVAP completion as an available condition in civil protection orders. Representative Arsenal said Vermont has 12 community-based DVAPs certified by the Vermont Council on Domestic Violence and that making completion available as an element of a civil order could help bridge a referral gap that today often exists only through the criminal process.
Section 3 of the bill would allow temporary emergency (ex parte) orders to grant temporary possession of a vehicle only when the court finds the transfer of possession is necessary for a plaintiff to escape abuse or prevent further harm, reflecting the higher standard used for emergency orders. Section 4 would require the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Commission to report biennially on the number of defendants ordered to complete DVAPs under section 2 and the number who completed the program.
Representative Arsenal said the committee vote was 9-0-2 and urged support; the House adopted the committee amendments and ordered third reading.
The bill sets an effective date of July 1, 2025.
