Restraining orders / slander reporting

[MrsR2018]

Hi all

I recently cut off my narcissist and abusive mother.

She has continuously slandered me on Facebook, including making light of when I was raped. She has sent several (possibly hundreds) of messages to me through various family members and friends. She sent me a “card” through Moonpig which was just full of abuse.

Can anyone please advise how you start the process for a restraining order or potentially look at slander charges?

If anyone has any other suggestions I’m open to them!

many thanks!

are you/your mother in England?

Yes we are! Sorry that’s probably viral information that I left out. Thank you for asking!

Clearly tell her you wish for no further messages and further messages will be considered harassment.

report her to the police for harassment

You want to look into an injunction under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997. I’m more familiar with the Scottish system (but the act applies in both places and has separate parts) but I’d stay away from an action for slander (defamation) as they can be very complicated (just ask Amber Heard and Johnny Depp).

Sorry that you’re going through this.

I’d recommend gathering together evidence - screenshots/print outs of the messages and then consulting a solicitor if you can (probably a family lawyer who is used to getting these against abusive spouses)

Yes you could also report her to the police. They could charge her with offences under the communication acts.

@TheBolterdahling how do you report something like this to the police? It’s obviously not a 999 thing so I’m clueless!

@Fleur405 thank you, I have everything saved as a screenshot so have all of the evidence. I wondered if it would be police or solicitor to contact first

The non-emergency number is 101

Slander is a civil rather than criminal issue, I wouldn't go down that route if I were you

Is it generally known that you were raped? As a sexual offence survivor you have lifelong anonymity in law. If she has breached that and 'outed' you, then that is a criminal offence and you should report it.

Also you can do either. If you go down the civil route then you have some control over the timescale and what order the court is asked to make. but obviously there is a cost to that unless you are eligible for legal aid.

You can also sometimes report online - have a look at your local force’s website

Could you apply for a non molestation order? You can apply yourself and court forms are available online

Thanks all.

Think I might avoid the slander route then as sounds like it can be difficult and messy.

I’ve checked my local force website and it can be done online, great advice.