Kylea Wagner v. Rigo Tovar

Rapid City, South Dakota family law lawyers represented the parties in a protective order matter.



Kylea Wagner filed a petition for a protection order against Rigo Tovar for herself and their two minor children. Following a permanent order hearing, the circuit court found that domestic abuse occurred and issued a five-year domestic permanent protection order that required Rigo not to have any contact with Kylea and their two children. Rigo filed a motion to modify the protection order, which the circuit court denied following a hearing.



Kylea and Rigo began a significant romantic relationship in 2013 and have two children together: I.T. (ten years old) and T.T. (nine years old). In May 2024, Kylea filed a petition for a protection order against Rigo for herself and the two children. The petition alleged that on or about May 22, 2024, Rigo's actions inflicted Kylea and her children with fear that Rigo was about to cause them physical harm or bodily injury. Her petition included a "Summary of Incidents” describing certain events that occurred on December 30, 2023, January 8, 2024, January 14, 2024, February 8, 2024, and May 22, 2024. In the petition, Kylea also noted that she and Rigo had separated in February 2024 and that custody litigation had been initiated. In her request for relief, Kylea asked that Rigo receive supervised visitation with the children. The circuit court issued an ex parte temporary protection order and set the matter for a permanent order hearing. The temporary order authorized Rigo to have supervised visitation at United Families



When presented with a motion to modify the protection order and informed at the hearing on that motion that both Kylea and Rigo wanted some form of viable supervised visitation, the circuit court abused its discretion when it failed to modify the protection order consistent with the parties' wishes and the best interests of the children.Conclusion[¶27.] The circuit court was not clearly erroneous when it found that Rigo inflicted fear of imminent physical harm or bodily injury when he pointed a laser at Kylea and one of the children on January 14, 2024 and that this incident constituted domestic abuse under SDCL 25-10-1. The circuit court did not abuse its discretion by entering a five-year protection order that covered Kylea and the two children. The circuit court abused its discretion when it prohibited all contact between Rigo and his children for five years.

Reversed