After you get a court date, you must have someone give a copy of your court papers to the person you need protection from. This is called serving papers. A sheriff or marshal may be able to do it for you, but you can also choose someone else to serve for you. Serving the papers lets the other side know that a case was filed, what they can do next, and what they can't do (if there's a temporary restraining order).
PRINT EMAILTo ask the sheriff to serve your papers, you must have an address or location for the other side (restrained person). If the other side is in jail, the sheriff can serve them. If the other side is in prison in California, prison staff, not the sheriff, will serve your papers. Follow the instructions by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for serving someone in prison.
What if I don't want the sheriff to serve my court papers?It’s important to have the restrained person served as soon as possible. Once they are served, the police can arrest them for violating the order. Service is also important because it will give the judge the power to consider granting you a long-term restraining order, that could last up to five years. Without service, the court can only grant you a temporary restraining order. Service can be a hard step to complete and make take multiple tries. At your court date, the judge can give you more time, if you need it.
For your case to move forward, you need to have your court papers served, even if the judge did not grant you a temporary restraining order.