HB 1456: Crimes and offenses; protective orders or consent agreements for victims against persons who have committed acts of sexual assault; provide

Georgia currently has a legal process for protective orders in family violence and stalking cases, but no dedicated civil protective order process specifically for sexual assault when the victim and the person who assaulted them are not family members or intimate partners. This bill creates that process by adding a new section to Georgia's sexual offenses law (O.C.G.A. § 16-6-26). A person who has been subjected to, threatened with, or placed in fear of sexual assault, defined by reference to a list of existing Georgia crimes such as rape, sexual battery, child molestation, and sex trafficking, could file a sworn petition asking a court for protection. Courts could issue emergency ex parte orders (granted without the other side present) when the petition shows probable cause of past assault and risk of future assault, and copies would go to the National Crime Information Center. Courts could also issue longer-term protective orders or approve consent agreements ordering the person to stop the conduct and avoid harassing the victim or household minors. Violating such an order would be both contempt of court and a misdemeanor crime.

• Creates a new civil protective order and consent agreement process specifically for victims of sexual assault, separate from existing family violence protections.
• Defines 'sexual assault' for this purpose by listing specific existing Georgia crimes, including rape, sexual battery, child molestation, and sex trafficking.
• Allows courts to issue emergency ex parte protective orders when a sworn petition shows probable cause of past assault and risk of future assault.
• Requires ex parte orders to be sent immediately to the petitioner and to the National Crime Information Center.
• Makes violating a protective order or consent agreement issued under this section both contempt of court and a misdemeanor crime.
• Applies existing procedural rules from Georgia's family violence protective order law (O.C.G.A. §§ 19-13-2 through 19-13-5) to these new sexual assault petitions.

People who have been sexually assaulted, including minors (whose petitions must be signed by a parent or guardian), and the people accused of assaulting them. Superior court clerks, judges, and law enforcement agencies that process these petitions and enforce the resulting orders would also be affected.

Sexual assault victims without a qualifying family or dating relationship to their attacker currently may lack a clear civil protective order option under Georgia law. This bill would give them a court-based path to seek a no-contact order, with violations treated as both contempt of court and a criminal misdemeanor.

• Section 1 adds new Code Section 16-6-26 defining 'sexual assault' by cross-referencing 13 specific existing Georgia crimes, from rape to computer pornography and child exploitation.
• Subsection (b) allows a petitioner to file a sworn petition alleging sexual assault, with petitions by minors requiring a parent or guardian's signature.
• Subsection (c) sets the petitioner's burden of proof as a preponderance of the evidence (more likely than not).
• Subsection (d) authorizes ex parte temporary relief orders based on probable cause of past and future risk of assault, with copies sent to the petitioner and the National Crime Information Center.
• Subsection (e) allows courts to grant protective orders or consent agreements directing the respondent to stop the conduct and avoid harassment, enforceable as contempt under O.C.G.A. § 15-6-8.
• Subsection (f) makes violating such an order a misdemeanor crime.
• Subsection (g) extends procedural rules from Georgia's existing family violence protective order statutes (O.C.G.A. §§ 19-13-2 to 19-13-5) to these new petitions.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-03House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-02-26House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-02-25House Hopper (House)

• Marvin Lim (D, HD-098)Primary sponsor
• Karen Lupton (D, HD-083)
• David Wilkerson (D, HD-038)
• William Werkheiser (R, HD-157)

• sexual assault
• protective orders
• victim rights
• criminal law
• court procedures