Protection Orders Must be Served by Law Enforcement

Neb. Rev. Stat. 28-311.09(8) provides:
Upon the issuance of any harassment protection order under this section, the clerk of the court shall forthwith provide the petitioner, without charge, with two certified copies of such order. The clerk of the court shall also forthwith provide the local police department or local law enforcement agency and the local sheriff's office, without charge, with one copy each of such order and one copy each of the sheriff's return thereon. The clerk of the court shall also forthwith provide a copy of the harassment protection order to the sheriff's office in the county where the respondent may be personally served together with instructions for service. Upon receipt of the order and instructions for service, such sheriff's office shall forthwith serve the harassment protection order upon the respondent and file its return thereon with the clerk of the court which issued the harassment protection order within fourteen days of the issuance of the harass­ment protection order. If any harassment protection order is dismissed or modified by the court, the clerk of the court shall forthwith provide the local police department or local law enforcement agency and the local sheriff's office, without charge, with one copy each of the order of dismissal or modification.
(Emphasis added).  Notice that this section requires service of the protection order on the respondent by law enforcement.  


Neb. Rev. Stat. 28-311.09(4) provides: 
A petition for a harassment protection order filed pursuant to subsection (1) of this section may not be with­drawn except upon order of the court. An order issued pursuant to subsection (1) of this section shall specify that it is effective for a period of one year unless otherwise modified by the court. Any person who knowingly violates an order issued pursuant to subsection (1) of this section after service shall be guilty of a Class II misdemeanor.
(Emphasis added).  Notice here that a person can be convicted of a protection order violation only if that protection order was served on the Respondent/Defendant.  


This is the ruling of the Nebraska Supreme Court in State v. Graff, 282 Neb. 746 (2011).  The Court held that the language of the statute is plain and unambiguous.  So the takeaway is that there can be no conviction for violation of a protection order, unless that protection order was personally served on the Respondent/Defendant by law enforcement, not by mail, not by the clerk, only by law enforcement.