Only peaceful contact for exchanging your children and for court-ordered visitation, on the terms a family, juvenile, or probate court order sets. On a California criminal protective order (Judicial Council form CR-160), the peaceful-contact exception exists only if the judge checked it on your order, and it is not a general permission to talk, explain, or apologize.

What the exception actually says

On the current CR-160 (revised January 1, 2026), the exception is item 17. When it is checked, the defendant may have peaceful contact with the protected persons, as an exception to the order’s no-contact and stay-away terms, but “only for the safe exchange of children and court-ordered visitation” as stated in a family, juvenile, or probate court order. The item has two boxes for identifying that order: (a) a specific order, listed by case number and date of issue, or (b) any family, juvenile, or probate order issued after the criminal order is signed. If item 17 is not checked on your order, there is no peaceful-contact exception at all, no matter how reasonable a brief conversation about the kids might seem.

Why it depends on a separate family court order

The exception points to another court’s order because that is where the details live. Under the coordination rules in Penal Code section 136.2(f), a family or juvenile court order can coexist with a criminal protective order on conditions: an order permitting contact between the restrained person and the restrained person’s children must provide for the safe exchange of the children and must not contain language that violates a criminal court’s no-contact order, and the family or juvenile court must specify the time, day, place, and manner of the child’s transfer. Family Code section 3100(d) adds that when visitation is ordered in a case where domestic violence is alleged and a protective or restraining order has been issued, the visitation order must spell out the time, day, place, and manner of the visitation or any transfer of the child, to limit the child’s exposure to conflict and keep the family safe. The peaceful-contact box is what links the two orders: it allows peaceful contact for the exchanges and visitation that order describes, without that contact violating the criminal order’s no-contact and stay-away terms.

A different exception, for a different purpose

Do not confuse peaceful contact with the CR-160’s separate attorney exception. The no-contact term (item 15) bars contact “directly or indirectly, by any means,” including through a third party, but it carves out contact made through a lawyer, within whatever reasonable limits the court sets. That carve-out has nothing to do with children, and it does not let you reach the protected person yourself by saying you are passing along something from a lawyer. Peaceful contact, by contrast, can allow limited direct contact between the parties themselves, but only for the exchanges and court-ordered visitation described in the family, juvenile, or probate order.

What peaceful contact does not cover

  • Discussing the criminal case, finances, the relationship, or anything else at a child exchange is outside the exception, even if the conversation starts with the children.
  • An apology, an explanation, or an attempt to “clear the air” during a handoff is not protected just because it happens at a permitted exchange.
  • If there is no qualifying family, juvenile, or probate order, being about the children does not make contact lawful.
  • If the protected person wants to talk longer, that does not widen the exception. The CR-160 tells officers to keep enforcing the order despite a protected person’s invitation or agreement, and says only a new court order can change its terms.
  • Contact that goes beyond the exception, or that turns hostile, can lead to a new protective order violation or contempt charge.

Before relying on a peaceful-contact exchange

  • Read item 17 of your own CR-160 to confirm it is checked, and which box applies: a specific named case, or any later family, juvenile, or probate order.
  • Read what that family, juvenile, or probate order actually says about the time, day, place, and manner of exchanges and visits, because the exception covers contact only as stated in that order.
  • Keep the contact limited to the exchange or visit itself.
  • Carry a certified copy of the most recent family, juvenile, or probate order. The CR-160 says both the restrained and the protected person should always carry one.
  • If the family court later changes the visitation schedule, check whether your CR-160 already covers later orders (box b) or whether your lawyer needs to ask the criminal court to update it.

Every CR-160 is filled out differently, and whether yours includes this exception depends on what the judge actually checked. The Law Offices of David S. Chesley can review your criminal order and your family court paperwork with you: call (800) 755-5174.