A Protection From Abuse order can be violated in Pennsylvania in various ways. For the sake of this discussion, we'll assume that the protection from abuse order allows no contact between the defendant and the plaintiff. If the defendant were to contact the plaintiff directly or through a third party, that would be a violation, if a defendant contacts the plaintiff, say, either in person, by phone, by text message, by email, on social media, that would be a violation. The same would be true if it's done by a third party at the defendant's behest, although even if the defendant did not seek that the third party to do so, a plaintiff could potentially make the claim that it was the defendant's responsibility.
In that regard, a defendant can also violate a PFA by coming too close to a plaintiff if there's a specific provision in terms of how far the defendant has to stay from the plaintiff, in terms of distance per the PFA or if the defendant were to just come within the same confines or space of the plaintiff. There's various ways that a defendant can violate a PFA.
It is a very serious matter to be accused of violating a PFA in Pennsylvania, a person can be charged with indirect criminal contempt, which is a criminal charge, or can face civil contempt for violating a PFA. Having an experienced Protection From Abuse attorney in your corner from as early as possible in the process will help you best understand and navigate the process and best defend against the PFA.
