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IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF IOWA No. 6-580 / 06-0080 Filed August 9, 2006 NATALIE M. HOSCH, Plaintiff-Appellee, vs. THOMAS ROLLE, Defendant-Appellant. ________________________________________________________________ Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Jones County, Douglas S. Russell, Judge.

Thomas Rollee appeals from the district court order granting a permanent protective order to Natalie Hosch. REVERSED AND REMANDED.

Thomas Bitter of Bitter Law Offices, Dubuque, for appellant. Robert L. Day, Jr. of Day, Hellmer & Straka, P.C., Dubuque, for appellee.

Considered by Vogel, P.J., and Miller and Eisenhauer, JJ.

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EISENHAUER, J. Thomas Rolle and Natalie Hosch divorced approximately seven years ago. They had two minor children. Rolle voluntarily terminated his parental rights to both children so Hosch's husband could adopt them. An agreement between the parties allowed Rolle to maintain certain contact with the children. On November 1, 2005, Rolle was upset about Hosch's compliance with the agreement. He called her at 3:54 p.m. and left a message on her cellular phone in which he said, "You and your current husband rot in hell, I hope you die." On November 7, 2005, Hosch filed a petition for relief from domestic abuse. She alleged that Rolle had been calling and harassing her and her family in the seven years following their divorce, including flying over her farm in an ultralight plane on four occasions and driving by the home. November 1, 2005, phone call as the most recent threat. At the hearing on the protective order, Hosch testified that she believed Rolle was threatening her personal safety and that she and her family were in imminent danger when he called her on November 1, 2005. Hosch also testified that in the seven years since the divorce, Rolle had never been on her property or touched her. Following the hearing, the district court entered a protective order. In its order denying Rolle's post-judgment motion, the court found Rolle's phone message "constituted an act intended to place another in fear of immediate physical contact which would be painful, injurious, insulting or offensive to the She cited the

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Petitioner coupled with the apparent ability to do the act" and concluded the message constituted an assault. Domestic abuse occurs when an assault occurs between persons divorced from each other. Iowa Code

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