TIRED OF PEOPLE WHO FEEL AS IF THEY ARE THE MOST HIGH GOD - AND FEEL THAT THEY HAVE A RIGHT TO BLOCK MY COMMUNICATION WITH MY EX -LIFE PARTNER - THIS ALL STARTED YEARS AGO BUT HAS IN FACT NOW BECOME SO INTRUSIVE AND INSANELY ABUSIVE THAT I FIND IT IMPOSSIBLE TO CONTINUE TO KEEP MY MOUTH SHUT ON THIS ISSUE -
(4)(a) "Coercive control" means a pattern of behavior that is used to cause another to suffer physical, emotional, or psychological harm, and in purpose or effect unreasonably interferes with a person's free will and personal liberty. In determining whether the interference is unreasonable, the court shall consider the context and impact of the pattern of behavior from the perspective of a similarly situated person. Examples of coercive control include, but are not limited to, engaging in any of the following:
(i) Intimidation or controlling or compelling conduct by:
(A) Damaging, destroying, or threatening to damage or destroy, or forcing the other party to relinquish, goods, property, or items of special value;
(B) Using technology to threaten, humiliate, harass, stalk, intimidate, exert undue influence over, or abuse the other party, including by engaging in cyberstalking, monitoring, surveillance, impersonation, manipulation of electronic media, or distribution of or threats to distribute actual or fabricated intimate images;
(C) Carrying, exhibiting, displaying, drawing, or threatening to use, any firearm or any other weapon apparently capable of producing bodily harm, in a manner, under circumstances, and at a time and place that either manifests an intent to intimidate the other party or that warrants alarm by the other party for their safety or the safety of other persons;
(D) Driving recklessly with the other party or minor children in the vehicle;
(E) Communicating, directly or indirectly, the intent to:
(I) Harm the other party's children, family members, friends, or pets, including by use of physical forms of violence;
(II) Harm the other party's career;
(III) Attempt suicide or other acts of self-harm; or
(IV) Contact local or federal agencies based on actual or suspected immigration status;
(F) Exerting control over the other party's identity documents;
(G) Making, or threatening to make, private information public, including the other party's sexual orientation or gender identity, medical or behavioral health information, or other confidential information that jeopardizes safety; or
(H) Engaging in sexual or reproductive coercion;
(ii) Causing dependence, confinement, or isolation of the other party from friends, relatives, or other sources of support, including schooling and employment, or subjecting the other party to physical confinement or restraint;
(iii) Depriving the other party of basic necessities or committing other forms of financial exploitation;
(iv) Controlling, exerting undue influence over, interfering with, regulating, or monitoring the other party's movements, communications, daily behavior, finances, economic resources, or employment, including but not limited to interference with or attempting to limit access to services for children of the other party, such as health care, medication, child care, or school-based extracurricular activities;
(v) Engaging in vexatious litigation or abusive litigation as defined in RCW 26.51.020 against the other party to harass, coerce, or control the other party, to diminish or exhaust the other party's financial resources, or to compromise the other party's employment or housing; or
(vi) Engaging in psychological aggression, including inflicting fear, humiliating, degrading, or punishing the other party.
(b) "Coercive control" does not include protective actions taken by a party in good faith for the legitimate and lawful purpose of protecting themselves or children from the risk of harm posed by the other party.
(5) "Consent" in the context of sexual acts means that at the time of sexual contact, there are actual words or conduct indicating freely given agreement to that sexual contact. Consent must be ongoing and may be revoked at any time. Conduct short of voluntary agreement does not constitute consent as a matter of law. Consent cannot be freely given when a person does not have capacity due to disability, intoxication, or age. Consent cannot be freely given when the other party has authority or control over the care or custody of a person incarcerated or detained.
(6)(a) "Course of conduct" means a pattern of conduct composed of a series of acts over a period of time, however short, evidencing a continuity of purpose. "Course of conduct" includes any form of communication, contact, or conduct, including the sending of an electronic communication, but does not include constitutionally protected free speech. Constitutionally protected activity is not included within the meaning of "course of conduct."
(b) In determining whether the course of conduct serves any legitimate or lawful purpose, a court should consider whether:
(i) Any current contact between the parties was initiated by the respondent only or was initiated by both parties;
(ii) The respondent has been given clear notice that all further contact with the petitioner is unwanted;
(iii) The respondent's course of conduct appears designed to alarm, annoy, or harass the petitioner;
(iv) The respondent is acting pursuant to any statutory authority including, but not limited to, acts which are reasonably necessary to:
(A) Protect property or liberty interests;
(B) Enforce the law; or
(C) Meet specific statutory duties or requirements;
(v) The respondent's course of conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with the petitioner's privacy or the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive living environment for the petitioner; or
(vi) Contact by the respondent with the petitioner or the petitioner's family has been limited in any manner by any previous court order.
(7) "Court clerk" means court administrators in courts of limited jurisdiction and elected court clerks.
(8) "Dating relationship" means a social relationship of a romantic nature. Factors that the court may consider in making this determination include: (a) The length of time the relationship has existed; (b) the nature of the relationship; and (c) the frequency of interaction between the parties.
(9) "Domestic violence" means:
(a) Physical harm, bodily injury, assault, or the infliction of fear of physical harm, bodily injury, or assault; nonconsensual sexual conduct or nonconsensual sexual penetration; coercive control; unlawful harassment; or stalking of one intimate partner by another intimate partner; or
(b) Physical harm, bodily injury, assault, or the infliction of fear of physical harm, bodily injury, or assault; nonconsensual sexual conduct or nonconsensual sexual penetration; coercive control; unlawful harassment; or stalking of one family or household member by another family or household member.
(10) "Electronic monitoring" has the same meaning as in RCW 9.94A.030.
(11) "Essential personal effects" means those items necessary for a person's immediate health, welfare, and livelihood. "Essential personal effects" includes, but is not limited to, clothing, cribs, bedding, medications, personal hygiene items, cellular phones and other electronic devices, and documents, including immigration, health care, financial, travel, and identity documents.
(12) "Facility" means a residence licensed or required to be licensed under chapter 18.20 RCW, assisted living facilities; chapter 18.51 RCW, nursing homes; chapter 70.128 RCW, adult family homes; chapter 72.36 RCW, soldiers' homes; chapter 71A.20 RCW, residential habilitation centers; or any other facility licensed or certified by the department of social and health services.
(13) "Family or household members" means: (a) Persons related by blood, marriage, domestic partnership, or adoption; (b) persons who currently or formerly resided together; (c) persons who have a biological or legal parent-child relationship, including stepparents and stepchildren and grandparents and grandchildren, or a parent's intimate partner and children; and (d) a person who is acting or has acted as a legal guardian.
(14) "Financial exploitation" means the illegal or improper use of, control over, or withholding of, the property, income, resources, or trust funds of the vulnerable adult by any person or entity for any person's or entity's profit or advantage other than for the vulnerable adult's profit or advantage. "Financial exploitation" includes, but is not limited to:
(a) The use of deception, intimidation, or undue influence by a person or entity in a position of trust and confidence with a vulnerable adult to obtain or use the property, income, resources, government benefits, health insurance benefits, or trust funds of the vulnerable adult for the benefit of a person or entity other than the vulnerable adult;
(b) The breach of a fiduciary duty, including, but not limited to, the misuse of a power of attorney, trust, or a guardianship or conservatorship appointment, that results in the unauthorized appropriation, sale, or transfer of the property, income, resources, or trust funds of the vulnerable adult for the benefit of a person or entity other than the vulnerable adult; or
(c) Obtaining or using a vulnerable adult's property, income, resources, or trust funds without lawful authority, by a person or entity who knows or clearly should know that the vulnerable adult lacks the capacity to consent to the release or use of the vulnerable adult's property, income, resources, or trust funds.
(15) "Firearm" means a weapon or device from which a projectile or projectiles may be fired by an explosive such as gunpowder. "Firearm" does not include a flare gun or other pyrotechnic visual distress signaling device, or a powder-actuated tool or other device designed solely to be used for construction purposes. "Firearm" also includes parts that can be assembled to make a firearm.
(16) "Full hearing" means a hearing where the court determines whether to issue a full protection order.
(17) "Full protection order" means a protection order that is issued by the court after notice to the respondent and where the parties had the opportunity for a full hearing by the court. "Full protection order" includes a protection order entered by the court by agreement of the parties to resolve the petition for a protection order without a full hearing.
