This action will be quicker than a full paternity action. Either parent may also choose to file a parentage action and get a child support order without contacting the prosecutor's office. If you have been subjected to violence, and are afraid of future violence, you may ask the court for a protection order to give the police the authority to arrest the abuser if he comes near or harasses you. For instructions on filing an order of protection, contact your local court advocate or domestic violence advocate. A protection order can also designate one parent as a legal custodian of a child and specify whether the non-custodial parent has visitation rights.
Protection orders expire in one year, so the custody order is only temporary.
Also child support is not included in a protection order and a protection order does not establish legal paternity. To make the restriction permanent, a parenting plan that gives residential time only to one parent must be proposed and approved by the court.