One Credible Death Threat Should Be Enough
In Ohio, the current standards surrounding Emergency Protection Orders (EPOs) often require multiple incidents, ongoing harassment, or a documented pattern of escalating behavior before stronger emergency protections are granted. That leaves people vulnerable during the exact moment protection is needed most.

I know this because I experienced it firsthand.

My neighbor, separated from me by only a paper-thin apartment wall, threatened to kill me. This was not an anonymous internet argument or distant threat from a stranger online. This was immediate, personal, and terrifying.

The situation escalated to the point that police became involved after he invaded my home and attacked me. He was arrested and spent several days in jail. Despite all of that, I was still denied emergency protection because it was reportedly considered only a “single incident.”

That is a dangerous flaw in the system.

If a threat is serious enough for:

police involvement,
assault allegations,
forced entry,
arrest,
jail time,
and fear for someone’s safety inside their own home,
then it should qualify for immediate temporary protection review before violence escalates further.

This individual is a convicted felon with a history of violence and emotional instability, yet there is effectively nothing stopping him from remaining directly next door while the legal process slowly moves forward. My lease even states “no criminal activity” on the front page, yet I still have no clear answer about whether this violent individual will be removed from the property.

Nobody should have to wait for a second threat, a second attack, or a tragedy before the system takes stronger preventative action.

Unfortunately, there are already documented cases where warning signs existed before tragedy occurred.

Gaberien Clevenger (Ohio)
A 22-year-old Ohio woman sought a protection order against her estranged husband. The request was denied. Days later, she was found murdered in a wooded area.

People Magazine Coverage:
https://people.com/crime/ohio-woman-order-protection-denied-husband-allegedly-killed-her/

News 5 Cleveland Coverage:
https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/local-news/oh-richland/calls-for-change-after-murdered-woman-denied-protective-order

KTNV Investigation
Another case involving a woman reportedly denied protection before later family killings.

https://www.ktnv.com/news/contact-13/wife-denied-protection-order-before-family-killed

These are not isolated situations. Victim advocacy organizations and public safety experts have repeatedly warned that credible threats can be warning signs before serious violence or death occurs.

Waiting for multiple incidents before stronger emergency protections can be considered places victims at unnecessary risk.

If someone made a direct death threat toward a police officer, school official, courthouse, or public figure, the response would likely be immediate and aggressive. Ordinary citizens deserve to feel protected too.

Ohio should reform its emergency protection laws to allow judges and law enforcement greater ability to issue temporary emergency protection orders after a single credible death threat, especially when factors such as:

violence,
assault,
forced entry,
criminal history,
arrest,
incarceration,
or immediate proximity to the victim
are involved.
This petition is not about revenge, harassment, or internet drama.

It is about prevention, public safety, and fixing gaps in the system before more people get hurt.

No one should have to live in fear, separated from a violent person by nothing more than a thin wall, while waiting for the legal system to decide whether the danger is “serious enough.”

If you believe one credible death threat should be enough to trigger emergency protection review before violence escalates further, please sign and share this petition.

Prevention before tragedy starts with taking warning signs seriously.