Wisconsin Abuse Victims Can Now Request Protection With Their Phones

It's one of the most common crimes in America, and also one of the most hidden. There were about 1.1 million domestic violence victimizations in the U.S. in 2024, and more than a third were never reported to police.

That's an improvement from the year before, when about half went unreported, but it still means hundreds of thousands of victims suffered in silence.

The reasons victims stay silent are heartbreakingly human. In a federal study of unreported cases, about a third of victims said the abuse felt too personal to report.

Others said they wanted to protect the abuser, felt it wasn't serious enough, or feared revenge. Women were four times more likely than men to stay quiet out of fear of reprisal.

In Wisconsin, the stakes couldn't be higher. Domestic violence claimed 99 lives in the state in 2024, a record according to End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin, and 71% of those deaths involved a firearm.

However, there's now a new tool that advocates hope will help more people get protected before it's too late. Wisconsinites can now ask for a temporary restraining order online, any time of day or night, without ever setting foot in a courthouse.

Wisconsin Launches Statewide Online Restraining Order Portal

The Wisconsin Court System's new Restraining Order Portal went live statewide on September 1, and it's now available in all 72 counties. The court system highlighted the launch on October 1 to mark the start of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

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The statewide rollout followed a summer pilot program in eight counties:

• Adams
• Barron
• Brown
• Dane
• Kenosha
• Milwaukee
• Sauk
• Waukesha.

During the pilot, 72 petitions were filed through the portal. The project was funded through a U.S. Department of Justice grant, and Wisconsin was one of just three courts nationwide selected to take part.

"It takes an act of courage to file for a restraining order," Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Jill Karofsky said when announcing the portal, adding that the court wants to make the process as easy as possible during what's often an urgent time.

How Wisconsin's Restraining Order Portal Works

The portal works on computers, phones, and tablets, and it walks users through the process step by step in plain language. You answer guided questions, the portal generates the correct court forms for you, and then it submits them directly to your local circuit court.

Users can create an eFiling account to submit everything in one simplified process, or they can prepare their forms without creating an account at all. Filing a domestic abuse restraining order in Wisconsin is free of charge.

A temporary restraining order, or TRO, orders someone to stay away from the person who requested it. TROs are generally in effect for less than two weeks and are often granted on an emergency basis until a judge holds a hearing on a longer-term injunction.

Why Advocates Say the Portal Matters

For survivors, timing is everything, and abuse doesn't keep business hours. Robin Dalton of End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin points out that survivors can now file 24/7, whenever they're truly in crisis, and that the new system is far more intuitive for people filing without an attorney.

"Every time we remove a barrier, more survivors are protected," Dalton told Wisconsin Public Radio.

Advocates at The Women's Center in Waukesha, which helped test the portal, say it has significantly cut the time it takes victims to complete a TRO. Many petitioners have told them the process was much easier than they expected.

What the Portal Can and Can't Do

For now, the portal only handles domestic abuse and harassment petitions. Child abuse and individual-at-risk petitions still need to be filed on paper at the courthouse or through the court's traditional eFiling system.

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It's also important to know that filing for a restraining order is not the same as reporting a crime to police. Anyone in immediate danger should always call 911.

Where to Find Help in Wisconsin

If you or someone you love is experiencing domestic violence, you don't have to figure it out alone. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is available 24/7 at 1-800-799-7233, or you can text START to 88788 or visit thehotline.org.

End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin also has a "Get Help" map to find local advocates in every corner of the state, from Superior to Kenosha.

If you're worried someone may be monitoring your phone or computer, consider using a device they can't access, like one at a library or a trusted friend's home.

Asking for help is one of the bravest things a person can do. It shouldn't also be one of the hardest. Wisconsin just made that first step a little easier, and that's a change worth sharing. You never know who might need to see it.