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HomeMy WebLinkAbout95-04514 . ' v. IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA NO. 95-4514 CIVIL TERM PROTECTION FROM ABUSE COLETTE N. PETERSON, Plaintiff STEPHEN V. MORTON, SR., Defendant MOTION FOR CONTINUANCE The plaintiff moves the Court for an Order continuing tho hearing in the above-captioned case on the grounds that: 1. A Temporary Protection Order was issued by this Court on August 24, 1995, scheduling a hearing for September 1, 1996, at 3:30 p.m. 2. The Dauphin County Sheriff's Department served the defendant in the Dauphin County Prison with a certified copy of the Temporary Protection Order and Petition for Protection Order. 3. The defendant was not brought to the courthouse for the hearing and a continuance was granted on September 6, 1996, rescheduling the hearing for September 19, 1995, at 8:45 a.m.. 4. The defendant contacted Legal Services, Inc. to request an attorney and the plaintiff agreed to continue the matter to afford the defendant time to retain counsel. 5. The hearing was rescheduled until October 10, 1995, at 3:30 p.m. 6. The plaintiff contacted Legal Services, Inc. on the date of the hearing to say that she had recently had surgery and was limited to bedrest. Legal Services, Inc. contacted the defendant's attorney and the part1es agreed to continue the ~ COLETTE N. PETERSON, . . plaintiff . . . . v. . . : : STEPHEN V. MORTON, SR., : Defendant . . IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA ~1!;1'1. No. 95 - ~ CIVIL TERM PROTECTION FROM ABUSE DEFENDANT. STEPHEN V. MORTON'S. ANSWER TO PLAINTIFF'S PETITION AND NOW, comes Defendant, steven V. Morton, Sr., by and through his attorney, Timothy P. Keating, Esquire, and submits the following Answer to plaintiff's petition: 1. Adm! tted. 2. Neither admitted nor denied. Defendant has insufficient information as to why the Plaintiff is currently living where she is. 3 . Admi tted. 4 . Admitted. 5. To the extent that the allegations in this paragraph are a request for admissions to criminal acts, Defendant objects to any requirement mandating that he respond thereto. To any remaining allegations contained therein, Defendant has insufficient knowledge relating thereto, and therefore holds Plaintiff to the applicable standard of proof. Sa. For the purposes of this paragraph, Defendant does admit he was arrested and is currently in the Dauphin county Prison with COLETTE N. PETERSON/ plaintiff . . IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA NO. 95- 40/4 CIVIL TERM PROTECTION FROM ABUSE v. STEPHEN V. MORTON, SR., Defendant TEMPORARY PROTECTION ORDER AND NOW, this o?~t6 day of August, 1995, upon presentation and consideration of the within petition, and upon finding that the plaintiff, COLETTE N. PETERSON, noW residing at an undisclosed location, is in immediate and present danger of abuse from the defendant, STEPHEN V. MORTON, SR., the following Temporary Order is entered. The defendant, STEPHEN V. MORTON, SR., SSN:UNKNOWN and DOB: 1/3/67, now incarcerated in the Dauphin County prison, Harrisburg, Dauphin county, pennsylvania, is hereby enjoined from physically abusing the plaintiff, COLETTE PETERSON, or placing her. in fear of abuse. The defendant is ordered to stay away from any residence the plaintiff has now or may establish for herself in the future. The defendant is ordered to refrain from having any direct or indirect contact with the plaintiff including, but not limited to, telephone and written communications. The defendant is enjoined from harassing and stalking the plaintiff and from harassing the plaintiff's relatives. The defendant is enjoined from entering the plaintiff's place of employment. The defendant is enjoined from removing, damaging, destroying or selling any property owned by the plaintiff. A violation of this order may subject the defendant to: i) arrest under 23 Pa. C.S. 56113; ii) a private criminal complaint under 23 Pa. C.S. 56113.1; iii) a charqe of indirect criminal contempt under 23 Pa. C.S. 56114, punishable by imprisonment up to six months and a fine of $100.00-$1,000.00; and iv) civil contempt under 23 Pa. C.S. 56114.1. Resumption of co-residence on the part of the plaintiff and defendant shall not nullify the provisions of the court order. This Order shall remain in effect until modified or terminated by the Court after notice and hearing, and can be extended beyond its original expiration date if the Court finds that the defendant has committed another act of abuse or has engaged in a pattern or practice that indicates continued risk of harm to the plaintiff. 0- A hearing shall be held on this matter on the ')4tiJu-mu.M-' , ;3 U ~ygust, 1995, at 9' 0 /1 .m., in Courtroom NO.-L-, cumberland I County Courthouse, Carlisle, Pennsylvania. /,O-{ day of The plaintiff may proceed without pre-payment of fees pending a further order after the hearing. The Cumberland County Sheriff's Department shall attempt to make service at the plaintiff'S request and without pre-payment of fees, but service may be accomplished under any applicable rule of civil Procedure. This Order shall be docketed in the office of the COLETTE N. PETERSON, plaintiff IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNT~, PENNSYLVANIA v. NO. 95- CIVIL TERM STEPHEN V. MORTON, SR., Defendant PROTECTION FROM ABUSE NOT ICE ~ou have been sued in court. If you wish to defend against the claims set forth in the following pages, you must take action promptly after this Petition, Order and Notice are served, by appearing personally or by attorney at the hearing scheduled by the court and presenting to the Court your defenses or Objections to the claims set forth against you. ~ou are warned that if you fail to do so the Court may proceed without you, and a judgment may be entered against you by the Court without further notice for any money claimed in the Petition or for any other claim or relief requested by the plaintiff. ~ou may lose money or property or other rights important to you. PEES AND COSTS If the case goes to hearing and the judge grants a protection Order, a surcharge of $25.00 will be assessed against you. You may also be required to pay attorney fees to Legal Services, Inc. for their representation of the plaintiff. You should take this paper to your lawyer at once. If you do not bave a lawyer or cannot afford one, go to or telephone the offioe set forth below to find out where you oan get legal help. COURT ADMINISTRATOR, 4th FLOOR CUMBERLAND COUNT~ COURTHOUSE CARLISLE, PENNSYLVANIA 17013 TELEPHONE NUMBER: (717) 240-6200 AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT OF 1990 The Court of common Pleas of cumberland county is required by law to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. For information about accesoible facilities and reasonable accommodations available to disabled individuals having business before the court, please contact our office. All arrangements must be made at least 72 hours prior to any hearing or business before the court. You must attend the scheduled conference or hearing. RELIEP UNDER THB PROTECTION PROM ABUSE ACT, 23 P.S. S 6101 et seq. A. ABUSE 1. The plaintiff, COLETTE PETERSON, is an adult individual residing at an undisclosed location. 2. The plaintiff is temporarily staying at an undisclosed location for her own protection and to avoid further abuse as is more fully set forth herein. This address will be furnished to the court upon request. 3. The defendant, STEPHEN V. MORTON, SR., SSN:UNKNOWN and DOB: 1/3/67, is an adult individual currently incarcerated at the Dauphin County Prison, but normally resides at 2732 N. 5th street, Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania 17107. 4. The defendant is the former intimate partner of the plaintiff. 5. since approximately 1994, the defendant has attempted to cause and has intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly caused serious bodily harm to the plaintiff and committed rape to the plaintiff, has placed the plaintiff in reasonable fear of imminent serious bodily injury, and has knowingly engaged in a course of conduct or repeatedly committed acts toward the plaintiff under circumstances which have placed the plaintiff in reasonable fear of bodily injury. This has included, but is not limited to, the following spscific instances of abuse: a. On or about August B, 1995, the defendant woke the plaintiff from a sound sleep while holding an ax in his hand. The defendant became angry at the plaintiff for crying and put his arm over the plaintiff's stomach to keep her from getting up, and punched the plaintiff several times in the forehead. When the plaintiff tried to sit up, the defendant pushed her back down onto the bed. The defendant then threatened the plaintiff with the ax saying, "If you don't tell me the truth, I'm going to cut off your head," causing the plaintiff to fear for her life. The defendant stood up, walked around the bed while holding the ax, and threatened the plaintiff saying, "I'm going to go to jail because I'm going to break every bone in your body." The defendant then punched the plaintiff about the head and face approximately three times. The plaintiff tried to block the punches by putting her arms over her head. Upon doing so, the defendant hit the plaintiff in the elbow with the ax, cutting her arm and causing it to bleed profusely. The defendant next sat on the plaintiff, punched her in the bridge of the nose, breaking it and cutting it open. The defendant got off of the plaintiff and several minutes later, came at the plaintiff and punched her about the head, jumped on her, pushed her head into the pillow several times trying to suffocate her, and threatened her saying, "I'll kill you, bitch." While the defendant went to the phone, the plaintiff went into the bathroom to clean up the blood. The defendant came into the bathroom and said, "I'm going to kill you," and punched the plaintiff in the cheek and lip, causing it to swell. The defendant then ordered the plaintiff into the bedroom saying he was going to "break her up." The defendant then got onto the bed and forced the plaintiff to perform oral sex upon him, threatening to kill her if she did not. The defendant then forced the plaintiff to have intercourse. When the plaintiff knew the defendant was asleep, she left the residence and went immediately to the Polyclinic Emergency Room. The plaintiff suffered lacerations to her elbow and nose which required stitches, bruising and broken blood vessels to her eye, a fractured nose, bruising to her face and lip, swelling to her face, and bruises to her thigh and buttocks. The defendant was arrested and is currently in the Dauphin County prison in lieu of $250,000 bail. b. On or about August 4, 1995, the defendant woke the plaintiff from her sleep and threatened to break her into little pieces if she did not tell him the information he wanted. The defendant became angry and hit the plaintiff in the side of the face several times with a 40 oz. bottle of beer. When the plaintiff begged him to stop, he threatened her saying, "You deserve to get broke up; you're going to get broke up before you leave this room," and hit her again with the bottle in her face. The defendant then jumped up, held the plaintiff down, and hit her in the face with the bottle saying, "see, I should just kill you." The defendant then forced the plaintiff to perform oral sex on him. The plaintiff suffered severe bruising and swelling to the side of her face and bruising to her eye. c. On or about July 7, 1995, the defendant woke the plaintiff from her sleep, brought a friend into the room, and stood over the plaintiff hOlding a poker iron. The defendant threatened to hit the friend and the plaintiff with the iron and held it menacingly above them as if to hit them, causing the plaintiff to fear for her life. The defendant became extremely angry because the plaintiff was crying and forcfully hit the plaintiff in the leg with the poker iron, punched her in the face with his fist, and swung the poker iron again at the plaintiff who moved to avoid being hit. The defendant also hit the plaintiff in the buttocks with the poker iron, causing large bruises. Also on this day, the defendant threatened the plaintiff saying, "I know I'm going to jail, I know I am and when I get out, I'm going to kill you." d. On or about July 8, 1995, the defendant head butted the plaintiff in the face, causing swelling and bruising to her eye. 6. On or about August 7, 1995, the plaintiff left her residence at 2732 N. 5th street, Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, in order to avoid further abuse. 7. The plaintiff believes and therefore avers that she is in immediate and present danger of abuse from the defendant, and that she is in need of protection from such abuse. 8. The plaintiff desires that the defendant be prohibited from having any direct or indirect contact with the plaintiff including, but not limited to, telephone and written communications. 9. The plaintiff desires that the defendant be enjoined from harassing and stalking the plaintiff, and from harassing the plaintiff'S relatives. 10. The plaintiff desires that the defendant be restrained from entering her place of employment. 11. The plaintiff desires that the defendant be enjoined from removing, damaging, destroying or selling any property owned by the plaintiff. B. LOSSES/ATTORNEY FEES 12. The plaintiff has suffered losses as a result of the abuse by the defendant. The losses are listed on Exhibit A which is attached and incorporated herein by reference. 13. The plaintiff asks that the defendant be ordered to pay reasonable attorney fees to Legal Services, Inc. WHEREFORE, pursuant to the provisions of the "protection from Abuse Act" of october 7, 1976, 23 P.S. S 6101 et sea., as amended, the plaintiff prays this Honorable court to grant the following relief: A. Grant a Temporary Order pursuant to the "protection from Abuse Act:" 1. ordering the defendant to refrain from abusing the plaintiff or placing her in fear of abuse; 2. Ordering the defendant to refrain from having any direct or indirect contact with the plaintiff including, but not limited to, telephone and written communications; 3. ordering the defendant to refrain from harassing and stalking the plaintiff and from harassing the plaintiff's relatives; 4. prohibiting the defendant from entering the plaintiff's place of employment; 5. prohibiting the defendant from removing, damaging, destroying or selling property jointly owned by the plaintiff; 6. Ordering the def~ndant to stay away from any residence the plaintiff has now or may establish for herself in the future; B. Schedule a hearing in accordance with the provisions of the "Protection from Abuse AC~," and, after such hearing, enter an order to be in effect for a period of one year: 1. Ordering the defendant to refrain from abusing the plaintiff or placing her in fear of abuse. 2. ordering the defendant to refrain from having any direct or indirect contact with the plaintiff including, but not limited to, telephone and written communications. 3. Ordering the defendant to refrain from harassing and stalking the plaintiff and from harassing the plaintiff's relatives. 4. Prohibiting the defendant from entering the plaintiff's place of employment. 5. Prohibiting the defendant from removing, damaging, destroying or selling property owned by the plaintiff. 6. ordering the defendant to stay away from any residence the plaintiff has now or may establish for herself in the future. 7. Ordering the defendant to reimburse the plaintiff's out-of-pocket losses suffered as a result of the abuse, including but not limited to the losses listed on the attached sheet marked Exhibit A. 8. Ordering the defendant to pay reasonable attorney fees to Legal Services, Inc. ~ . . . COLETTE N. PETERSON, plaintiff IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA v. . . : NO. 95-4514 CIVIL TERM STEPHEN V. MORTON, SR., Defendant PROTECTION FROM ABUSE : MOTION FOR CONTINUANCE The plaintiff moves this court for an Order continuing the hearing of this case on the grounds that: 1. A Temporary protection order was issued by this court on the 24th day of August, 1995, scheduling a hearing for the 1st day of september, 1995, at 3:30 p.m. 2. The defendant was served with the Temporary protection Order and contacted Legal Services, Inc. to advise that office that he wished a hearing on the matter. 3. Legal services, Inc. filed a writ of Habeas Corpus Ad Testificandum with the cumberland county Sheriff's Department on August 31, 1995, to bring the defendant to the hearing scheduled for September 1, 1995, at 3:30 p.m. 4. On September 1, 1995, this court continued the hearing because the defendant had not been brought from the Dauphin county prison for the hearing. 5. The plaintiff requests that the hearing be rescheduled and that the Temporary protection Order remain in effect for one year or pending further Order of Court. 6. A copy of the Order for continuance will be delivered to the appropriate police Departments by attorneys for the plaintiff. vs. IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA NO. 95-4514 CIVIL TERM COLETTE N. PETERSON, Plaintiff STEPHEN V. MORTON, SR., Defendant PROTECTION FROM ABUSE MOTION FOR CONTINUANCE The plaintiff moves the Court for an order continuing the hearing in the above-captioned case on the grounds that: 1. A Temporary Protection Order was issued by this Court on August 24, 1995, scheduling a hearing for September 1, 1995, at 3:30 p.m. 2. The Dauphin county Sheriff's Department served the defendant in the Dauphin county Prison with a certified copy of the Temporary Protection Order and petition for Protection Order. 3. The defendant was not brought to the courthouse for the hearing and a continuance was granted on September 5, 1995, rescheduling the hearing for September 19, 1995, at 8:45 a.m. 4. The defendant contacted Legal Services, Inc., to request an attorney and the plaintiff agreed to continue the matter to afford the defendant time to retain counsel. 5. The hearing was rescheduled until october 10, 1995, at 3:30 p.m. 6. By agreement of the parties, the hearing was rescheduled for October 27, 1995, at 1:30 p.m. 7. The parties have agreed to settle the matter by consent agreement. 8. The plaintiff requests a general continuance to afford the