Safety Mode
Safety routes ahead of everything else
If any part of your situation involves violence, threats, stalking, or control, this page comes before forms and checklists. If you are in immediate danger, call 911 now.
Talk to someone now
- Emergency: 911
- Florida Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-500-1119 (24/7, connects to your local certified center)
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233 · text START to 88788 · thehotline.org (live chat)
Is this device safe?
If someone monitors your phone or computer — or ever had access to it — assume they can see what you do on it.
- The Quick Exit button (top of every page, or Esc twice) replaces this tab with a neutral site — it does not erase history.
- Browsers keep history: use private/incognito windows, or better, a device the other person has never touched (work computer, library, a trusted friend's phone).
- Shared accounts leak: iCloud/Google accounts sync browsing, photos, and location across devices. Check what's signed in where.
- Location sharing: check phone settings, shared family plans, AirTags, and vehicle apps.
- This site stores tool progress in the browser itself — on a shared device, use the reset buttons in each tool, or private browsing from the start.
Protective injunctions, in brief
Florida has civil protective injunctions for domestic violence, repeat violence, dating violence, sexual violence, and stalking. What matters practically:
- The clerk of court helps you file — there is no filing fee for these petitions, and no lawyer is required to start one.
- A judge can enter a temporary injunction the same day, without the other side present, followed by a full hearing (commonly within about 15 days).
- Injunctions can address contact, the home, temporary time-sharing, temporary support, and firearms surrender.
- The injunction case is separate from any divorce or paternity case — you can have both at once.
- Petition Form 12.980(a) is the domestic-violence version; your clerk's office and local DV center walk people through it every day.
Protect the record, protect the address
- Preserve evidence safely: photos of injuries/damage, screenshots of messages, medical records, police report numbers — stored somewhere the other person cannot reach (new email account, trusted person).
- Florida's Address Confidentiality Program (through the Attorney General) can shield your address in public records if you relocate.
- In court filings, ask about confidential-address procedures BEFORE filing anything with your new address on it.
- Safety-focused parenting plans (Form 12.995(b)) exist for supervised time-sharing and protected exchanges.
This page is safety information, not legal advice. Local certified domestic violence centers provide free advocates who know your county's courthouse; legal aid organizations prioritize these cases. If contacting any resource could be seen on your device or statements, use a safer channel first.