The opinion
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8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
9 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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11 A. M., a minor, by and through her CASE NO. CV23-10090-MCS-PVCx
guardian ad litem, AHTZIRI NAVA;
12 AHTZIRI NAVA, an individual,
STIPULATED PROTECTIVE
13 ORDER
Plaintiff(s),
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v.
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CITY OF LOS ANGELES; LOS
16 ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT;
AND DOES 1 - 50, INCLUSIVE,
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Defendant(s).
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19 1. INTRODUCTION
20 1.1 PURPOSES AND LIMITATIONS
21 Discovery in this action is likely to involve production of confidential,
22 proprietary, or private information for which special protection from public disclosure
23 and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting this litigation may be warranted.
24 Accordingly, the parties hereby stipulate to and petition the Court to enter the following
25 Stipulated Protective Order. The parties acknowledge that this Order does not confer
26 blanket protections on all disclosures or responses to discovery and that the protection it
27 affords from public disclosure and use extends only to the limited information or items
1 parties further acknowledge, as set forth in Section 12.3, below, that this Stipulated
2 Protective Order does not entitle them to file confidential information under seal; Civil
3 Local Rule 79-5 sets forth the procedures that must be followed and the standards that
4 will be applied when a party seeks permission from the court to file material under seal.
5 1.2 GOOD CAUSE STATEMENT
6 This action involves the City of Los Angeles (“the City”) and members of the
7 City’s Los Angeles Police Department (“LAPD”). The nature of the incident gives rise
8 to Plaintiffs’ suit and Plaintiff’s claims and allegations, will result in discovery
9 production that includes: police reports and evidence investigation reports and evidence;
10 peace officer personnel materials, information implicating privacy rights of third party
11 individuals (i.e. bystander witnesses, emergency personnel information); and other
12 private and confidential materials for which require special protection from public
13 disclosure.
14 Specifically, Plaintiffs are seeking material and information that Defendant City
15 (collectively, “Defendant”) maintains as confidential such as personnel files of the
16 police and/or sworn officers involved in the incident, Internal Affairs materials and
17 information, video recordings, audio recordings, photographs, Force Investigation
18 Division materials and information and other administrative materials and information
19 currently in the possession of Defendant and which Defendant believes need special
20 protection from public disclosure and from use for any purpose other than prosecuting
21 this litigation. Plaintiffs may also seek official information contained in the personnel
22 files of the police and/or sworn officers involved in the subject incident, which
23 Defendant maintains as strictly confidential and which Defendant believes need
24 special protection from public disclosure and from use for any purpose other than
25 prosecuting this litigation.
26 Defendant asserts that the confidentiality of the materials and information
27 sought by Plaintiffs is recognized by California and federal law, as evidenced inter alia
1 Cal., 511 F.2d 192, 198 (9th Cir. 1975), aff'd, 426 U.S. 394 (1976). Defendant has not
2 publicly released the materials and information referenced above except under
3 protective order or pursuant to a court order, if at all. The personnel materials and
4 information are of the type that has been used to initiate disciplinary action against the
5 City’s respective employees, and has been used as evidence in disciplinary
6 proceedings, where the employee conduct was considered to be contrary to policy.
7 Defendant contends that absent a protective order delineating the
8 responsibilities of nondisclosure on the part of the parties hereto, there is a specific
9 risk of unnecessary and undue disclosure by one or more of the many attorneys,
10 secretaries, law clerks, paralegals and expert witnesses involved in this case, as well as
11 the corollary risk of embarrassment, harassment and professional and legal harm on
12 the part of the City’s employees referenced in the materials and information.
13 Defendant also contends that the unfettered disclosure of the materials and
14 information, absent a protective order, would allow the media to share this information
15 with potential jurors in the area, impacting the rights of Defendant herein to receive a
16 fair trial.
17 Accordingly, to expedite the flow of information, to facilitate the prompt
18 resolution of disputes over confidentiality of discovery materials, to adequately protect
19 information the parties are entitled to keep confidential, to ensure that the parties are
20 permitted reasonable necessary uses of such material in preparation for and in the
21 conduct of trial, to address their handling at the end of the litigation, and serve the
22 ends of justice, a protective order for such information is justified in this matter. It is
23 the intent of the parties that information will not be designated as confidential for
24 tactical reasons and that nothing be so designated without a good faith belief that it has
25 been maintained in a confidential, non-public manner, and there is good cause why it
26 should not be part of the public record of this case.
27 Plaintiffs agree that there is Good Cause for a Protective Order so as to preserve
1 disagreements. The parties therefore stipulate that there is Good Cause for, and
2 hereby jointly request that the honorable Court issue a Protective Order regarding
3 confidential documents consistent with the terms and provisions of this Stipulation.
4 However, the entry of a Protective Order by the Court pursuant to this Stipulation shall
5 not be construed as any ruling by the Court on the aforementioned legal statements or
6 privilege claims in this section, no shall this section be construed as part of any such
7 Court Order.
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9 2. DEFINITIONS
10 2.1 Action: A. M., a minor, by and through her guardian ad litem, AHTZIRI
11 NAVA, et al. v City of Los Angeles, et al. USCD Case No. 2:23-cv-10090-MCS-PVx
12 2.2 Challenging Party: a Party or Non-Party that challenges the designation of
13 information or items under this Order.
14 2.3 “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items: information (regardless of how
15 it is generated, stored or maintained) or tangible things that qualify for protection under
16 Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(c), and as specified above in the Good Cause
17 Statement. [Note: any request for a two-tiered, attorney-eyes-only protective order that
18 designates certain material as “Highly Confidential” will require a separate and detailed
19 showing of need.]
20 2.4 Counsel: Outside Counsel of Record and House Counsel (as well as their
21 support staff).
22 2.5 Designating Party: a Party or Non-Party that designates information or
23 items that it produces in disclosures or in responses to discovery as
24 “CONFIDENTIAL.”
25 2.6 Disclosure or Discovery Material: all items or information, regardless of
26 the medium or manner in which it is generated, stored, or maintained (including, among
27 other things, testimony, transcripts, and tangible things), that are produced or generated
1 2.7 Expert: a person with specialized knowledge or experience in a matter
2 pertinent to the litigation who has been retained by a Party or its counsel to serve as an
3 expert witness or as a consultant in this Action.
4 2.8 House Counsel: attorneys who are employees of a party to this Action.
5 House Counsel does not include Outside Counsel of Record or any other outside
6 counsel.
7 2.9 Non-Party: any natural person, partnership, corporation, association, or
8 other legal entity not named as a Party to this action.
9 2.10 Outside Counsel of Record: attorneys who are not employees of a party to
10 this Action but are retained to represent or advise a party to this Action and have
11 appeared in this Action on behalf of that party or are affiliated with a law firm which
12 has appeared on behalf of that party, and includes support staff.
13 2.11 Party: any party to this Action, including all of its officers, directors,
14 employees, consultants, retained experts, and Outside Counsel of Record (and their
15 support staffs).
16 2.12 Producing Party: a Party or Non-Party that produces Disclosure or
17 Discovery Material in this Action.
18 2.13 Professional Vendors: persons or entities that provide litigation support
19 services (e.g., photocopying, videotaping, translating, preparing exhibits or
20 demonstrations, and organizing, storing, or retrieving data in any form or medium) and
21 their employees and subcontractors.
22 2.14 Protected Material: any Disclosure or Discovery Material that is
23 designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.”
24 2.15 Receiving Party: a Party that receives Disclosure or Discovery Material
25 from a Producing Party.
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27 3. SCOPE
1 The protections conferred by this Stipulation and Order cover not only Protected
2 Material (as defined above), but also (1) any information copied or extracted from
3 Protected Material; (2) all copies, excerpts, summaries, or compilations of Protected
4 Material; and (3) any testimony, conversations, or presentations by Parties or their
5 Counsel that might reveal Protected Material.
6 Any use of Protected Material at trial will be governed by the orders of the trial
7 judge. This Order does not govern the use of Protected Material at trial.
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9 4. DURATION
10 Once a case proceeds to trial, all of the information that was designated as
11 confidential or maintained pursuant to this protective order becomes public and will be
12 presumptively available to all members of the public, including the press, unless
13 compelling reasons supported by specific factual findings to proceed otherwise are
14 made to the trial judge in advance of the trial. See Kamakana v. City and County of
15 Honolulu, 447 F.3d 1172, 1180-81 (9th Cir. 2006) (distinguishing “good cause”
16 showing for sealing documents produced in discovery from “compelling reasons”
17 standard when merits-related documents are part of court record). Accordingly, the
18 terms of this protective order do not extend beyond the commencement of the trial.
19 5. DESIGNATING PROTECTED MATERIAL
20 5.1 Exercise of Restraint and Care in Designating Material for Protection. Each
21 Party or Non-Party that designates information or items for protection under this Order
22 must take care to limit any such designation to specific material that qualifies under the
23 appropriate standards. The Designating Party must designate for protection only those
24 parts of material, documents, items, or oral or written communications that qualify so
25 that other portions of the material, documents, items, or communications for which
26 protection is not warranted are not swept unjustifiably within the ambit of this Order.
27 Mass, indiscriminate, or routinized designations are prohibited. Designations that are
1 unnecessarily encumber the case development process or to impose unnecessary
2 expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the Designating Party to sanctions.
3 If it comes to a Designating Party’s attention that information or items that it
4 designated for protection do not qualify for protection, that Designating Party must
5 promptly notify all other Parties that it is withdrawing the inapplicable designation.
6 5.2 Manner and Timing of Designations. Except as otherwise provided in this
7 Order (see, e.g., second paragraph of section 5.2(a) below), or as otherwise stipulated or
8 ordered, Disclosure or Discovery Material that qualifies for protection under this Order
9 must be clearly so designated before the material is disclosed or produced.
10 Designation in conformity with this Order requires:
11 (a) for information in documentary form (e.g., paper or electronic
12 documents, but excluding transcripts of depositions or other pretrial or trial
13 proceedings), that the Producing Party affix at a minimum, the legend
14 “CONFIDENTIAL” (hereinafter “CONFIDENTIAL legend”), to each page that
15 contains protected material. If only a portion or portions of the material on a page
16 qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify the protected
17 portion(s) (e.g., by making appropriate markings in the margins).
18 A Party or Non-Party that makes original documents available for inspection need
19 not designate them for protection until after the inspecting Party has indicated which
20 documents it would like copied and produced. During the inspection and before the
21 designation, all of the material made available for inspection will be deemed
22 “CONFIDENTIAL.” After the inspecting Party has identified the documents it wants
23 copied and produced, the Producing Party must determine which documents, or portions
24 thereof, qualify for protection under this Order. Then, before producing the specified
25 documents, the Producing Party must affix the “CONFIDENTIAL legend” to each page
26 that contains Protected Material. If only a portion or portions of the material on a page
27 qualifies for protection, the Producing Party also must clearly identify the protected
1 (b) for testimony given in depositions that the Designating Party identify
2 the Disclosure or Discovery Material on the record, before the close of the deposition all
3 protected testimony.
4 (c) for information produced in some form other than documentary and for
5 any other tangible items, that the Producing Party affix in a prominent place on the
6 exterior of the container or containers in which the information is stored the legend
7 “CONFIDENTIAL.” If only a portion or portions of the information warrants
8 protection, the Producing Party, to the extent practicable, will identify the protected
9 portion(s).
10 5.3 Inadvertent Failures to Designate. If timely corrected, an inadvertent
11 failure to designate qualified information or items does not, standing alone, waive the
12 Designating Party’s right to secure protection under this Order for such material. Upon
13 timely correction of a designation, the Receiving Party must make reasonable efforts to
14 assure that the material is treated in accordance with the provisions of this Order.
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16 6. CHALLENGING CONFIDENTIALITY DESIGNATIONS
17 6.1 Timing of Challenges. Any Party or Non-Party may challenge a
18 designation of confidentiality at any time that is consistent with the Court’s Scheduling
19 Order.
20 6.2 Meet and Confer. The Challenging Party will initiate the dispute resolution
21 process (and, if necessary, file a discovery motion) under Local Rule 37.1 et seq.
22 6.3 The burden of persuasion in any such challenge proceeding will be on the
23 Designating Party. Frivolous challenges, and those made for an improper purpose (e.g.,
24 to harass or impose unnecessary expenses and burdens on other parties) may expose the
25 Challenging Party to sanctions. Unless the Designating Party has waived or withdrawn
26 the confidentiality designation, all parties will continue to afford the material in question
27 the level of protection to which it is entitled under the Producing Party’s designation
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2 7. ACCESS TO AND USE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
3 7.1 Basic Principles. A Receiving Party may use Protected Material that is
4 disclosed or produced by another Party or by a Non-Party in connection with this Action
5 only for prosecuting, defending, or attempting to settle this Action. Such Protected
6 Material may be disclosed only to the categories of persons and under the conditions
7 described in this Order. When the Action has been terminated, a Receiving Party must
8 comply with the provisions of section 13 below (FINAL DISPOSITION).
9 Protected Material must be stored and maintained by a Receiving Party at a
10 location and in a secure manner that ensures that access is limited to the persons
11 authorized under this Order.
12 7.2 Disclosure of “CONFIDENTIAL” Information or Items. Unless otherwise
13 ordered by the court or permitted in writing by the Designating Party, a Receiving Party
14 may disclose any information or item designated “CONFIDENTIAL” only to:
15 (a) the Receiving Party’s Outside Counsel of Record in this Action, as well
16 as employees of said Outside Counsel of Record to whom it is reasonably necessary to
17 disclose the information for this Action;
18 (b) the officers, directors, and employees (including House Counsel) of the
19 Receiving Party to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action;
20 (c) Experts (as defined in this Order) of the Receiving Party to whom
21 disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have signed the
22 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);
23 (d) the Court and its personnel;
24 (e) court reporters and their staff;
25 (f) professional jury or trial consultants, mock jurors, and Professional
26 Vendors to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary for this Action and who have
27 signed the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A);
1 (g) the author or recipient of a document containing the information or a
2 custodian or other person who otherwise possessed or knew the information;
3 (h) during their depositions, witnesses, and attorneys for witnesses, in the
4 Action to whom disclosure is reasonably necessary provided: (1) the deposing party
5 requests that the witness sign the form attached as Exhibit A hereto; and (2) they will
6 not be permitted to keep any confidential information unless they sign the
7 “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound” (Exhibit A), unless otherwise agreed
8 by the Designating Party or ordered by the court. Pages of transcribed deposition
9 testimony or exhibits to depositions that reveal Protected Material may be separately
10 bound by the court reporter and may not be disclosed to anyone except as permitted
11 under this Stipulated Protective Order; and
12 (i) any mediator or settlement officer, and their supporting personnel,
13 mutually agreed upon by any of the parties engaged in settlement discussions.
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15 8. PROTECTED MATERIAL SUBPOENAED OR ORDERED PRODUCED IN
16 OTHER LITIGATION
17 If a Party is served with a subpoena or a court order issued in other litigation that
18 compels disclosure of any information or items designated in this Action as
19 “CONFIDENTIAL,” that Party must:
20 (a) promptly notify in writing the Designating Party. Such notification will
21 include a copy of the subpoena or court order;
22 (b) promptly notify in writing the party who caused the subpoena or order to
23 issue in the other litigation that some or all of the material covered by the subpoena or
24 order is subject to this Protective Order. Such notification will include a copy of this
25 Stipulated Protective Order; and
26 (c) cooperate with respect to all reasonable procedures sought to be pursued by
27 the Designating Party whose Protected Material may be affected.
1 subpoena or court order will not produce any information designated in this action as
2 “CONFIDENTIAL” before a determination by the court from which the subpoena or
3 order issued, unless the Party has obtained the Designating Party’s permission. The
4 Designating Party will bear the burden and expense of seeking protection in that court
5 of its confidential material and nothing in these provisions should be construed as
6 authorizing or encouraging a Receiving Party in this Action to disobey a lawful
7 directive from another court.
8 9. A NON-PARTY’S PROTECTED MATERIAL SOUGHT TO BE PRODUCED
9 IN THIS LITIGATION
10 (a) The terms of this Order are applicable to information produced by a Non-
11 Party in this Action and designated as “CONFIDENTIAL.” Such information produced
12 by Non-Parties in connection with this litigation is protected by the remedies and relief
13 provided by this Order. Nothing in these provisions should be construed as prohibiting
14 a Non-Party from seeking additional protections.
15 (b) In the event that a Party is required, by a valid discovery request, to produce a
16 Non-Party’s confidential information in its possession, and the Party is subject to an
17 agreement with the Non-Party not to produce the Non-Party’s confidential information,
18 then the Party will:
19 (1) promptly notify in writing the Requesting Party and the Non-Party that
20 some or all of the information requested is subject to a confidentiality agreement with a
21 Non-Party;
22 (2) promptly provide the Non-Party with a copy of the Stipulated
23 Protective Order in this Action, the relevant discovery request(s), and a reasonably
24 specific description of the information requested; and
25 (3) make the information requested available for inspection by the Non-
26 Party, if requested.
27 (c) If the Non-Party fails to seek a protective order from this court within 14 days
1 produce the Non-Party’s confidential information responsive to the discovery request.
2 If the Non-Party timely seeks a protective order, the Receiving Party will not produce
3 any information in its possession or control that is subject to the confidentiality
4 agreement with the Non-Party before a determination by the court. Absent a court
5 order to the contrary, the Non-Party will bear the burden and expense of seeking
6 protection in this court of its Protected Material.
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8 10. UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED MATERIAL
9 If a Receiving Party learns that, by inadvertence or otherwise, it has disclosed
10 Protected Material to any person or in any circumstance not authorized under this
11 Stipulated Protective Order, the Receiving Party must immediately (a) notify in writing
12 the Designating Party of the unauthorized disclosures, (b) use its best efforts to retrieve
13 all unauthorized copies of the Protected Material, (c) inform the person or persons to
14 whom unauthorized disclosures were made of all the terms of this Order, and (d) request
15 such person or persons to execute the “Acknowledgment and Agreement to Be Bound”
16 that is attached hereto as Exhibit A.
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18 11. INADVERTENT PRODUCTION OF PRIVILEGED OR OTHERWISE
19 PROTECTED MATERIAL
20 When a Producing Party gives notice to Receiving Parties that certain
21 inadvertently produced material is subject to a claim of privilege or other protection, the
22 obligations of the Receiving Parties are those set forth in Federal Rule of Civil
23 Procedure 26(b)(5)(B). This provision is not intended to modify whatever procedure
24 may be established in an e-discovery order that provides for production without prior
25 privilege review. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 502(d) and (e), insofar as the
26 parties reach an agreement on the effect of disclosure of a communication or
27 information covered by the attorney-client privilege or work product protection, the
1 the court.
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3 12. MISCELLANEOUS
4 12.1 Right to Further Relief. Nothing in this Order abridges the right of any
5 person to seek its modification by the Court in the future.
6 12.2 Right to Assert Other Objections. By stipulating to the entry of this
7 Protective Order no Party waives any right it otherwise would have to object to
8 disclosing or producing any information or item on any ground not addressed in this
9 Stipulated Protective Order. Similarly, no Party waives any right to object on any
10 ground to use in evidence of any of the material covered by this Protective Order.
11 12.3 Filing Protected Material. A Party that seeks to file under seal any
12 Protected Material must comply with Civil Local Rule 79-5. Protected Material may
13 only be filed under seal pursuant to a court order authorizing the sealing of the specific
14 Protected Material at issue. If a Party's request to file Protected Material under seal is
15 denied by the court, then the Receiving Party may file the information in the public
16 record unless otherwise instructed by the court.
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18 13. FINAL DISPOSITION
19 After the final disposition of this Action, as defined in paragraph 4, within 60
20 days of a written request by the Designating Party, each Receiving Party must return all
21 Protected Material to the Producing Party or destroy such material. As used in this
22 subdivision, “all Protected Material” includes all copies, abstracts, compilations,
23 summaries, and any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected
24 Material. Whether the Protected Material is returned or destroyed, the Receiving Party
25 must submit a written certification to the Producing Party (and, if not the same person or
26 entity, to the Designating Party) by the 60 day deadline that (1) identifies (by category,
27 where appropriate) all the Protected Material that was returned or destroyed and (2)
1 ||Summaries or any other format reproducing or capturing any of the Protected Material.
2 || Notwithstanding this provision, Counsel are entitled to retain an archival copy of all
3 || pleadings, motion papers, trial, deposition, and hearing transcripts, legal memoranda,
4 ||correspondence, deposition and trial exhibits, expert reports, attorney work product, and
5 consultant and expert work product, even if such materials contain Protected Material.
6 || Any such archival copies that contain or constitute Protected Material remain subject to
7 || this Protective Order as set forth in Section 4 (DURATION).
8 VIOLATION OF ORDER
9 Any willful violation of this Order may be punished by civil or criminal contempt
10 proceedings, financial or evidentiary sanctions, reference to disciplinary authorities, or
11 || other appropriate action at the discretion of the Court.
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13 FOR GOOD CAUSE SHOWN BY THE PARTIES’ STIPULATION, IT IS
14 ||SO ORDERED.
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fat
17 ||} DATED: July 17, 2024
18 HON. PEDRO V. CASTILLO
19 United States Magistrate Judge
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1 EXHIBIT A
2 ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND AGREEMENT TO BE BOUND
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4 I, _____________________________ [full name], of _________________ [full
5 address], declare under penalty of perjury that I have read in its entirety and understand
6 the Stipulated Protective Order that was issued by the United States District Court for
7 the Central District of California on [date] in the case of ___________ [insert case
8 name and number]. I agree to comply with and to be bound by all the terms of this
9 Stipulated Protective Order and I understand and acknowledge that failure to so comply
10 could expose me to sanctions and punishment in the nature of contempt. I solemnly
11 promise that I will not disclose in any manner any information or item that is subject to
12 this Stipulated Protective Order to any person or entity except in strict compliance with
13 the provisions of this Order.
14 I further agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for
15 the Central District of California for the purpose of enforcing the terms of this
16 Stipulated Protective Order, even if such enforcement proceedings occur after
17 termination of this action. I hereby appoint __________________________ [full
18 name] of _______________________________________ [full address and telephone
19 number] as my California agent for service of process in connection with this action or
20 any proceedings related to enforcement of this Stipulated Protective Order.
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Date: ______________________________________
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City and State where signed: ____________________________________________
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Printed name: _______________________________
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Signature: __________________________________