An Act To Clarify Maine's Protection from Abuse Statutes
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 19-A MRSA §4002, sub-§7 is enacted to read:
7. Social media. "Social media" means an electronic medium or service through which users create, share and view user-generated content, including, but not limited to, videos, still photographs, blogs, video blogs, podcasts, instant and text messages, e-mail, online service accounts and Internet website profiles and locations.
Sec. 2. 19-A MRSA §4007, sub-§1, ¶D, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 694, Pt. B, §2 and affected by Pt. E, §2, is amended to read:
D. Directing the defendant to refrain from having any direct or indirect contact with the plaintiff , including via social media;
SUMMARY
This bill clarifies that when a court directs a defendant in a protection from abuse case to refrain from having any direct or indirect contact with the plaintiff, this includes direct or indirect contact via social media, consistent with the ruling of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court in State v. Heffron, 2018 ME 102, 190 A.3d 232.