How to Get a Harassment Prevention Order in Massachusetts Under G.L. c. 258E: The Three Acts, the Affidavit, and the Hearing

A person who is being threatened, followed, or intimidated by a neighbor, a coworker, a former friend, a stranger, or someone online can ask a Massachusetts judge for a harassment prevention order under G.L. c. 258E. The judge can hear the request the same day, without the other person present.

The judge can order the person accused of harassment to stop the harassment, to have no contact with the plaintiff, and to stay away from the plaintiff’s home and workplace. Chapter 258E calls the person who asks for the order the plaintiff. The statute calls the person restrained by the order the defendant.

To get a 258E harassment prevention order, the plaintiff must prove that the defendant committed three separate acts of harassment. The plaintiff needs only one act when the defendant sexually assaulted the plaintiff or committed a crime specified in G.L. c. 258E, § 1.

The appellate courts have vacated harassment prevention orders again and again because the plaintiff proved fewer than three acts. This page explains who can file a complaint, the three acts required for an order, and where to file the complaint. The page describes the incidents the appellate courts have counted as acts and the incidents those courts have refused to count as acts.

The page then explains what to write in the affidavit, what happens at the two hearings, and the four orders specified in G.L. c. 258E, § 3(a). The page also explains how the plaintiff extends the order and what the plaintiff does when the defendant violates the order. Attorney Joe Serpa represents plaintiffs and defendants in hearings on 258E harassment prevention orders in the Boston Municipal Court and the District Courts of Greater Boston. The firm’s page on defending against a 258E harassment prevention order describes the case from the other side.

Who Can Ask for a 258E Harassment Prevention Order

Any person suffering from harassment may file a complaint for a 258E harassment prevention order. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(a). The statute requires no relationship between the plaintiff and the defendant. A plaintiff can obtain a harassment prevention order against a neighbor, a landlord or tenant, a coworker, a classmate, a customer, a former friend, a person the plaintiff dated briefly, or an online stranger. The statute requires three acts of harassment by the defendant against the plaintiff.

A person abused by a spouse, a former spouse, a relative, a household member, the other parent of the plaintiff’s child, or a person the plaintiff dated seriously usually files for a 209A abuse prevention order instead. An abuse prevention order can also require the defendant to move out of a shared home and can include custody and support terms. An abuse prevention order requires one act of abuse rather than three acts of harassment. The firm’s page on how to get a 209A restraining order explains who qualifies as a family or household member.

A parent or guardian can file a complaint for a 258E harassment prevention order on behalf of a minor child. In A.T. v. C.R., 88 Mass. App. Ct. 532 (2015), the Appeals Court upheld an order protecting an eleven-year-old girl against a classmate who had bullied her. The Juvenile Court has exclusive jurisdiction when the defendant is under 18. The plaintiff files the complaint in the Juvenile Court division for the place where the plaintiff lives. G.L. c. 258E, § 2. The judge can issue the order against an adult or a minor. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(a).

The Three Acts of Harassment Required for a 258E Harassment Prevention Order

Chapter 258E defines harassment as three or more acts of willful and malicious conduct aimed at a specific person. The acts must be committed with the intent to cause fear, intimidation, abuse, or damage to property. The acts must in fact cause fear, intimidation, abuse, or damage to property. G.L. c. 258E, § 1. The statute defines malicious as characterized by cruelty, hostility, or revenge. G.L. c. 258E, § 1. The plaintiff must prove the three acts by a preponderance of the evidence, which means that the plaintiff’s account is more likely true than not. F.K. v. S.C., 481 Mass. 325 (2019).

The Supreme Judicial Court has explained the four elements of each act. For each of the three acts, the plaintiff must prove four things. O’Brien v. Borowski, 461 Mass. 415, 420 (2012). Seney v. Morhy, 467 Mass. 58, 63 (2014).

• The defendant acted willfully.
• The defendant acted out of cruelty, hostility, or revenge.
• The act was aimed at the plaintiff.
• The defendant intended the act to cause fear, intimidation, abuse, or damage to property.

The plaintiff must also prove that the acts in fact caused fear, intimidation, abuse, or damage to property. The judge decides whether the acts in fact caused the required harm by looking at the whole course of conduct rather than at each act by itself. O’Brien, 461 Mass. at 426 n.8.

Fear under chapter 258E means fear of physical harm or fear of physical damage to property. The Supreme Judicial Court narrowed the meaning of the word fear in O’Brien, 461 Mass. at 427. Fear of embarrassment, fear of losing money, or fear of a bad reputation is not fear under chapter 258E.

The question whether the plaintiff was afraid is subjective. The plaintiff has to show that the plaintiff was in fact afraid, not that a reasonable person would have been afraid. Gassman v. Reason, 90 Mass. App. Ct. 1, 9 (2016). A.T. v. C.R., 88 Mass. App. Ct. at 537. Intimidation is a separate harm from fear. The Appeals Court held in A.T. that a threat to make the plaintiff’s life a living hell was intimidation. A.T., 88 Mass. App. Ct. at 536.

An incident that consists of words rather than conduct counts as an act only if the words are a true threat or fighting words. A true threat is a direct threat of imminent physical harm, or words or actions that, in context, cause the plaintiff to fear imminent physical harm now or in the future.

Fighting words are a direct personal insult addressed to the plaintiff that is inherently likely to provoke violence. O’Brien, 461 Mass. at 423, 425. Van Liew v. Stansfield, 474 Mass. 31, 36-37 (2016). Insults, criticism, and angry complaints are protected speech, which a judge may not count as acts of harassment.

Acts Counted and Acts Rejected in the Appellate Decisions

The appellate decisions show which incidents a judge may count as acts.

• In J.C. v. J.H., 92 Mass. App. Ct. 224 (2017), the defendant sent text messages telling the plaintiff she should be scared and that he knew where to find her, then showed up at her yoga studio. He then sent messages that she would pay the consequences and confronted her at a coffee shop. He then followed her to the private home where she worked, after she had told him repeatedly to leave her alone. The Appeals Court treated each message-and-appearance pair as one act, found three, and upheld the order.
• In A.T. v. C.R., 88 Mass. App. Ct. 532 (2015), the Appeals Court counted three acts. The first was a sexual comment made during a recorded video call. The second was a threat to make the plaintiff’s life a living hell if she showed the recording to anyone. The third was a stated wish to punch her.
• In Seney v. Morhy, 467 Mass. 58, 63-64 (2014), the defendant sent an email to a baseball coach describing the plaintiff in unflattering terms. The Supreme Judicial Court held that the email was not an act, because the defendant did not aim it at the plaintiff and did not send it out of cruelty, hostility, or revenge. A shouting match at a game, described only in general terms, was not an act either. One telephone threat was at most one act. The court vacated the order.
• In Smith v. Mastalerz, 467 Mass. 1001 (2014), a defendant drove past the plaintiff’s house three times within a very short period of time. The court held that the three passes were one continuous act, not three, because no evidence refuted the defendant’s claim that he lived down the street. The court held that the evidence was insufficient to support the harassment prevention orders.
• In F.K. v. S.C., 481 Mass. 325 (2019), a defendant who posted one threatening song online and linked to it committed one act. The judge could not count each threatening lyric as a separate act. The song remained one act even though several classmates heard the song. The court vacated the order.
• In Gassman v. Reason, 90 Mass. App. Ct. 1, 8 (2016), a neighbor’s repeated complaints about noise from the upstairs apartment were not intimidation. A single application for a criminal complaint against the plaintiff, later dismissed, was not an act of harassment. The court vacated the extension.
• In Van Liew v. Stansfield, 474 Mass. 31 (2016), a political candidate’s public statements that a town board member was corrupt and a liar were protected speech and not harassment. The Supreme Judicial Court also held that the anti-SLAPP statute, G.L. c. 231, § 59H, does not protect a petition for a 258E harassment prevention order when the petition has no reasonable factual support or arguable basis in law. A plaintiff whose complaint for a harassment prevention order has no reasonable factual support or arguable basis in law can therefore be sued for abuse of process and malicious prosecution if the complaint caused the defendant actual injury.

A plaintiff can learn three lessons from the appellate decisions. First, each act must be a separate event on a separate occasion, with its own date. Second, the acts must be aimed at the plaintiff, so a complaint to a third person about the plaintiff usually is not an act. Third, words are an act only when they threaten physical harm or are likely to start a fight. The plaintiff should therefore identify the threats, the incidents of following, the appearances at the home or workplace, and the property damage, rather than the insults.

One Act Is Enough for a Sexual Assault or a Crime Specified in Section 1

The plaintiff does not need three acts when the defendant committed an act described in the second part of the definition. A single act that by force, threat, or duress causes the plaintiff to engage involuntarily in sexual relations is harassment. G.L. c. 258E, § 1. A single act that constitutes a crime specified in G.L. c. 258E, § 1 is also harassment. The crimes specified in section 1 include indecent assault and battery, rape, assault with intent to rape, stalking, criminal harassment, enticement of a child, and drugging a person for sexual intercourse.

G.L. c. 258E, § 1, citing G.L. c. 265, §§ 13B, 13F, 13H, 22, 22A, 23, 24, 24B, 26C, 43, and 43A, and G.L. c. 272, § 3. A plaintiff who was sexually assaulted by an acquaintance, a coworker, or a date can obtain a 258E harassment prevention order on that one act without waiting for a criminal case.

The judge decides a claim based on a crime specified in section 1 by applying the elements of the crime. The plaintiff must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant committed the crime named in the complaint. F.A.P. v. J.E.S., 87 Mass. App. Ct. 595, 599-600 (2015).

The plaintiff does not need to prove that the defendant intended to cause fear or that the act caused fear, because those elements belong to the three-act definition. 87 Mass. App. Ct. at 599. A criminal conviction is not required. A.P. v. M.T., 92 Mass. App. Ct. 156, 162-163 (2017).

For a claim of forced sexual relations, the plaintiff proves that the defendant used force, threat, or duress and that the sexual relations were involuntary. The Appeals Court interprets the word force in light of the rape cases. M.G. v. G.A., 94 Mass. App. Ct. 139, 142-143 (2018). Force includes constructive force. Yahna Y. v. Sylvester S., 97 Mass. App. Ct. 184, 186 n.3 (2020). The firm’s page on consent in Massachusetts rape and sexual assault cases explains the elements of force, incapacity, and consent that the plaintiff must prove.

The Court Where the Plaintiff Files the Complaint

The plaintiff files the complaint in the District Court, the Boston Municipal Court, or the Superior Court for the place where the plaintiff lives. G.L. c. 258E, § 2. A plaintiff seeking an order against a defendant under 18 files the complaint in the Juvenile Court for the place where the plaintiff lives. G.L. c. 258E, § 2.

The court charges no filing fee. The clerk gives the plaintiff certified copies of every order at no charge. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(c). The complaint form requires the plaintiff to disclose every prior or pending case involving the two people, including court cases, administrative proceedings, and disciplinary proceedings. G.L. c. 258E, § 3. A plaintiff who has a pending workplace grievance, a school disciplinary case, or a condominium board dispute with the defendant lists that proceeding on the complaint.

The Complaint, the Affidavit, and the Confidential Information Form

The clerk’s office gives the plaintiff a packet of forms. The packet contains the Instructions to Plaintiff, the Complaint for Protection from Harassment, the Affidavit for Protection from Harassment, a Supplemental Affidavit, a Plaintiff Confidential Information Form, and a Defendant Information Form. The plaintiff fills the forms out at the courthouse and files them the same day.

The affidavit is the plaintiff’s sworn written statement, which the judge reads before the first hearing. The court’s own instructions on the affidavit tell the plaintiff to describe in detail the most recent incidents of harassment and state that the plaintiff must describe at least three separate incidents. The description should state what happened, what each person did, the dates, the locations, any injuries, and any medical care or other help sought by the plaintiff. A plaintiff who writes “he harasses me constantly” has not described three acts. A plaintiff who writes the date, the place, the defendant’s exact words, and what the plaintiff did afterward has described an act. The affidavit becomes part of the court file. The defendant receives a copy with the order. The Commonwealth and the defendant can both use the affidavit in any later criminal case, so the affidavit must be accurate and consistent with what the plaintiff told the police.

The Plaintiff Confidential Information Form holds the plaintiff’s home address, home telephone number, and workplace name, address, and telephone number. The clerk keeps the Plaintiff Confidential Information Form out of the public file. G.L. c. 258E, § 10. The plaintiff’s home and workplace addresses appear on the order served on the defendant unless the plaintiff asks the court to keep the addresses off the order. G.L. c. 258E, § 10.

A plaintiff who has moved away from the defendant asks the court at filing to keep the addresses off the order. The judge can also order other information in the case record impounded. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(b).

The Ex Parte Hearing on the Day of Filing

The judge hears the plaintiff the same day, usually within a few hours, without the defendant present. The court calls a hearing held without the defendant present an ex parte hearing. The plaintiff testifies under oath. The judge asks questions about the affidavit. The judge may issue a temporary order if the plaintiff shows a substantial likelihood of immediate danger of harassment. G.L. c. 258E, § 5.

Before deciding whether to issue an order, the judge reviews the defendant’s record in the court activity record information system and the statewide domestic violence record keeping system. The review shows whether the defendant has a civil or criminal record involving violent crimes or abuse. G.L. c. 258E, § 9.

A temporary order lasts no more than ten court business days, through 4:00 p.m. on the date set for the hearing after notice. Guidelines for Judicial Practice: Harassment Prevention Proceedings, Guideline 4:01 (Trial Court, rev. Oct. 2025). The judge tells the plaintiff the date of the hearing after notice. The plaintiff must attend the hearing after notice. The order states on its face that a violation is a criminal offense. G.L. c. 258E, § 9.

Service on the Defendant and the Surrender of Firearms

The clerk sends certified copies of the order, the complaint, and a summons to the police department where the defendant can be found. The police serve the defendant. G.L. c. 258E, § 9. The plaintiff does not serve the defendant and pays nothing for service. The order binds the defendant once the defendant knows about the order.

Since October 2, 2024, a judge who issues a 258E harassment prevention order can order the defendant to surrender guns and firearms licenses. A judge who issues a temporary or emergency order on a showing of a substantial likelihood of immediate danger of harassment must order two things.

The judge suspends the defendant’s license to carry firearms and firearm identification card. The judge orders the defendant to surrender the defendant’s firearms and ammunition. G.L. c. 258E, § 4A. A defendant can ask the same court to review the surrender order. The court must hear the defendant’s request for review within ten court business days. G.L. c. 258E, § 4A. After the hearing with notice, the judge decides whether returning the guns or the license presents a likelihood of harassment to the plaintiff.

The suspension and the surrender continue for as long as the order is in effect if the judge finds that returning the guns or the license presents a likelihood of harassment to the plaintiff. G.L. c. 258E, § 4B. A plaintiff who knows that the defendant owns guns should state that fact in the affidavit and at the hearing. The firm’s page on firearm surrender under a 258E harassment prevention order explains the surrender procedure and the return of the guns.

Emergency Orders When the Court Is Closed

A plaintiff in immediate danger at night, on a weekend, or on a holiday goes to the local police station or calls the police. The officer takes the plaintiff’s information and calls the on-call judge. The judge can issue an emergency order by telephone if the plaintiff shows a substantial likelihood of immediate danger of harassment. The officer writes the order on the official form and delivers it to the clerk on the next court business day. G.L. c. 258E, § 6.

The plaintiff must go to court on the next court business day to file the complaint. A plaintiff who cannot come to court because of a severe physical hardship can send a representative with an affidavit explaining the hardship. G.L. c. 258E, § 6.

A police officer who responds to a report of harassment has duties under the statute. The officer must assess the immediate physical danger to the plaintiff and encourage medical attention where there are injuries. The officer must give the plaintiff a written notice of the right to seek a 258E harassment prevention order and the right to seek a criminal complaint, and must file a written incident report. G.L. c. 258E, § 8. The plaintiff can get a copy of the incident report from the police department.

The Hearing After Notice

The court holds the hearing after notice no later than ten court business days after the judge issues the temporary order. The defendant may appear at the hearing and be heard. G.L. c. 258E, § 5. The plaintiff must come back to court on the date of the hearing after notice.

The temporary order expires at 4:00 p.m. on the day of the hearing if the plaintiff does not appear. Guideline 5:06. The judge treats a defendant who was served by the police and who fails to appear without an excuse as having given up the chance to be heard. The judge can then issue the order after notice, with the relief supported by the plaintiff’s evidence. Guideline 5:05. Without proof of service, the judge reschedules the hearing within the next ten court business days and extends the temporary order until the rescheduled hearing. Guideline 5:05.

The judge holds a contested hearing if the defendant appears. The plaintiff has the burden of proof and must prove three acts of harassment by a preponderance of the evidence. F.K., 481 Mass. 325. The judge may admit evidence that would be inadmissible at a trial under the rules of evidence, including hearsay and the affidavit.

The judge must be fair in admitting evidence and in weighing that evidence. Frizado v. Frizado, 420 Mass. 592, 597-598 (1995). The defendant has the right to testify, to present evidence, and to cross-examine the plaintiff and the plaintiff’s witnesses. Frizado, 420 Mass. at 597-598.

The plaintiff should expect the defendant to argue that the incidents were fewer than three, that the words were insults rather than threats, or that the plaintiff was never in fear of physical harm. The defendant may also argue that the plaintiff started the dispute or that the two people are simply neighbors who dislike each other. The judge decides whether the plaintiff’s account or the defendant’s account is true. The plaintiff can answer the defendant’s arguments with a dated list of incidents, the messages themselves, the police reports, and a witness to any threat.

The defendant may also deny the act or say that someone else committed the act. Evidence that proves the defendant committed the act includes a witness who saw the defendant, a doorbell or security camera recording, a police report that names the defendant, and a message in which the defendant admits the act.

The defendant may say that a screenshot was edited or came from another account. The plaintiff should keep every message on the phone in its original thread and bring the phone and printed copies to court, so the judge can see the sender, the date, and the surrounding messages.

Evidence That Supports a Complaint for a 258E Harassment Prevention Order

The plaintiff’s testimony, if the judge believes it, can support the order. Documents and witnesses corroborate the testimony and prove the three separate dates.

• A written log of every incident with the date, the time, the place, the defendant’s words and actions, and the names of anyone else present.
• Text messages, emails, voicemails, direct messages, and social media posts from the defendant, saved as screenshots that show the sender’s name or account, the date, and the time. The firm’s FAQ on text message and phone evidence explains how courts treat these records.
• Photographs of property damage, of the defendant at the plaintiff’s home or workplace, and of any injury, with the dates.
• Police incident reports for every call placed by the plaintiff.
• The names and telephone numbers of neighbors, coworkers, or friends who saw or heard an incident. A witness can testify in person.
• Any prior court order, criminal complaint, or restraining order involving the defendant.

Massachusetts is a two-party consent state for audio recordings. A plaintiff who secretly recorded the defendant should speak with a lawyer before offering the recording, because G.L. c. 272, § 99 criminalizes secret audio recording of another person’s oral communications. The statute applies to secret audio recording. The statute does not apply to a video with no sound or to a recording made with the defendant’s knowledge. The firm’s page on the Massachusetts wiretap law and secret recordings explains the rule.

The Terms of a 258E Harassment Prevention Order

Section 3(a) of chapter 258E specifies four orders. The judge can order the defendant to refrain from abusing or harassing the plaintiff. The judge can order the defendant to have no contact with the plaintiff, unless the court authorizes the contact. No contact means no contact in person, by telephone, by text, by email, through social media, or through another person. The judge can order the defendant to stay away from the plaintiff’s home and workplace.

The judge can order the defendant to pay the plaintiff for the losses caused by the harassment. The losses caused by the harassment include lost earnings, out-of-pocket losses for injuries or property damage, the cost of replacing locks, medical expenses, the cost of an unlisted telephone number, and reasonable attorney’s fees. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(a). The judge can also order the defendant to stay a stated number of yards away from the plaintiff, an order that the Appeals Court approved in A.T. v. C.R., 88 Mass. App. Ct. 532 (2015).

A 258E harassment prevention order does not include the custody, support, and vacate orders specified in G.L. c. 209A, § 3. A plaintiff who lives with the defendant and needs the defendant out of the home is a household member and files a complaint under chapter 209A.

Every 258E harassment prevention order is for a fixed period of up to one year. The order states on its face the date and time it expires and the date and time the court will hear the case again. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(d).

The Duration of the Order and the Extension Hearing

An order after notice lasts for the period set by the judge, up to one year. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(d). The plaintiff who wants the order continued must return to court on the expiration date and time printed on the order.

The judge decides whether to extend the order for any additional time reasonably necessary to protect the plaintiff, or to enter a permanent order, if the plaintiff appears. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(d). An order whose expiration date falls on a day the court is closed stays in effect until the next court business day. The plaintiff appears in court on the next court business day.

At the extension hearing, the plaintiff must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that an extension is reasonably necessary to protect the plaintiff from further harassment. Danny D. v. Eli E., 102 Mass. App. Ct. 901 (2023). The plaintiff does not have to prove the original three acts again or prove new harassment during the order. Danny D., 102 Mass. App. Ct. 901. Yasmin Y. v. Queshon Q., 101 Mass. App. Ct. 252, 259 (2022). The statute states that the absence of harassment while the order was in effect is not by itself a reason to deny an extension. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(d). The plaintiff does have to give the judge evidence of a continuing need, such as testimony that the defendant still lives next door, still works in the same building, or has contacted the plaintiff since the order. In Danny D., the plaintiffs’ lawyer argued from the original affidavits and offered no new evidence. The judge made no findings. The Appeals Court vacated the two extensions and held that a lawyer’s argument is not evidence.

Enforcing the Order

A violation of a 258E harassment prevention order is a crime. The Commonwealth prosecutes the defendant in the District Court or the Boston Municipal Court. A judge can sentence a convicted defendant to a fine of up to $5,000, to up to two and one-half years in the house of correction, or to both the fine and the jail term.

G.L. c. 258E, § 9. A police officer who witnesses a violation or has probable cause to believe that the defendant violated the order must arrest the defendant. G.L. c. 258E, § 8. The plaintiff reports the violation to the police, gives the police the copy of the order, and keeps a record of the date, the time, and what the defendant did.

The court that hears the violation can also order the defendant to pay the plaintiff’s losses from the violation, including attorney’s fees. G.L. c. 258E, § 9. The firm’s page on the criminal charge of violating a 258E harassment prevention order explains what the Commonwealth has to prove.

Only the court can change or end a 258E harassment prevention order. A plaintiff who replies to the defendant’s message or agrees to meet does not lift the order. The defendant who makes the contact still faces arrest and prosecution. Guideline 8:03. A plaintiff who wants to allow contact files a motion to modify the order in the court that issued the order.

Changing or Ending the Order, Appeals, and the Record

The court may modify a 258E harassment prevention order at any time on the motion of either party, after notice to the other party and a chance to be heard. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(e). A plaintiff who wants the order ended files a motion to terminate the order. The judge asks whether a narrower order would serve the plaintiff’s purpose. Guideline 6:05.

The court notifies the plaintiff when the defendant moves to modify or terminate the order, even when the plaintiff’s address is confidential. The plaintiff has no burden at the hearing on the defendant’s motion. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(e). Guideline 6:05. The defendant can appeal a harassment prevention order to the Appeals Court. O’Brien, 461 Mass. at 418. Seney, 467 Mass. 58. The order remains in effect during the appeal unless a judge orders otherwise.

The clerk sends every 258E harassment prevention order to the Commissioner of Probation for the court activity record information system and the statewide domestic violence record keeping system. G.L. c. 258E, § 9. The record of an order remains in the court activity record information system and the statewide domestic violence record keeping system after the order expires or is terminated. Guideline 6:05. The court directs the police to destroy their record of an order that a judge vacates. G.L. c. 258E, § 9.

A judge expunges the court record of a harassment prevention order only where the defendant proves by clear and convincing evidence that the plaintiff obtained the order through fraud on the court. Guideline 6:05. The firm’s page on expunging a 209A restraining order or 258E harassment prevention order from the registry explains the standard for expungement.

The Criminal Complaint as a Second Remedy

A plaintiff harassed by three or more acts can also apply for a criminal complaint. Criminal harassment under G.L. c. 265, § 43A(a) requires proof that the defendant willfully and maliciously engaged in a knowing pattern of conduct or series of acts over a period of time, directed at a specific person. The pattern must seriously alarm the targeted person and be one that would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress.

Stalking under G.L. c. 265, § 43 requires the same willful and malicious pattern of conduct or series of acts as criminal harassment, except that the stalking pattern must seriously alarm or annoy the targeted person. Stalking also requires a threat made with the intent to place the targeted person in imminent fear of death or bodily injury.

A threat to commit a crime under G.L. c. 275, § 2 requires one threat. The plaintiff applies for the complaint at the clerk’s office of the District Court or the Boston Municipal Court. The clerk-magistrate decides after a hearing whether probable cause supports the complaint. The district attorney’s office then prosecutes the case.

The case for a 258E harassment prevention order and the criminal case are separate cases. The plaintiff can pursue the harassment prevention order case and the criminal case at the same time. G.L. c. 258E, § 3(g). The firm’s pages on criminal harassment, stalking, and the clerk-magistrate hearing explain those cases.

Complaints Based on Insults, Disputes, or Fewer Than Three Acts

A complaint for a 258E harassment prevention order fails at the hearing after notice if the complaint is based on insults, on a neighbor’s complaints to the town, on a coworker’s criticism, or on two incidents rather than three. The defendant can then ask the court to vacate the temporary order.

A plaintiff whose complaint for a harassment prevention order has no reasonable factual support or arguable basis in law can also be sued for abuse of process or malicious prosecution if the complaint caused the defendant actual injury. The Supreme Judicial Court held in Van Liew v. Stansfield, 474 Mass. 31 (2016), that the anti-SLAPP statute does not protect a petition with no reasonable factual support or arguable basis in law.

A plaintiff with two threats and a year of insults should consider a criminal harassment complaint or a threats complaint, and should keep a dated log of any further acts. A plaintiff with three dated acts aimed at the plaintiff that caused fear of physical harm, intimidation, abuse, or property damage has a case for a harassment prevention order.

Representation for Plaintiffs

Attorney Joe Serpa reviews the plaintiff’s incidents against the three-act standard before the complaint is filed. The affidavit then identifies three separate dated acts and describes each one with the words, the conduct, and the effect on the plaintiff. He gathers the messages, screenshots, photographs, police reports, and witnesses. At the hearing after notice he presents the plaintiff’s evidence, cross-examines the defendant, and answers the defendant’s free speech and three-act arguments. He asks the judge for the specific terms that protect the plaintiff, including the stay-away distance, the workplace, and firearms surrender.

At the expiration date he presents the evidence of continuing need required for an extension. He has practiced Massachusetts criminal defense since 1995. He has handled hearings on 258E harassment prevention orders from both sides in the Boston Municipal Court and in the District Courts of Greater Boston, including Brookline, Cambridge, Concord, Dedham, Framingham, Hingham, Malden, Newton, Quincy, Somerville, Waltham, and Woburn.

A plaintiff who needs an order today should go to the courthouse, or to the police after hours. To prepare for the hearing after notice, the plaintiff can call the office before or after the judge issues the temporary order. Serpa Law Office is a one-lawyer office. A plaintiff who calls on the day the judge issues the temporary order gives Attorney Serpa the full ten court business days to prepare the testimony, the exhibits, and the witnesses.

Frequently Asked Questions About Getting a 258E Harassment Prevention Order in Massachusetts

Related Serpa Law Office Resources

• Massachusetts 258E Harassment Prevention Orders: Defense and Plaintiff Representation
• Criminal Violation of a 258E Harassment Prevention Order
• Firearm Surrender Under a Massachusetts 258E Harassment Prevention Order
• Expunging a 209A Restraining Order or 258E Harassment Prevention Order From the Massachusetts Registry
• Massachusetts 209A Restraining Order and 258E Harassment Prevention Order Violation FAQs
• When Does Unwanted Contact Become Harassment Under Chapter 258E?
• Criminal Harassment, 258E Orders, and the First Amendment
• Massachusetts Criminal Harassment Defense
• Massachusetts Criminal Harassment FAQs
• Massachusetts Stalking Defense
• How to Get a 209A Restraining Order in Massachusetts
• Massachusetts 209A Restraining Orders (Abuse Prevention Orders)
• Massachusetts Restraining Orders and Harassment Prevention Orders
• Trespass Charges in Massachusetts Under G.L. c. 266, § 120