Rule Enforcement Process

[Whitney]

Although the moderators at HAF would prefer to be unnecessary, sometimes users create a need for us to intervene in order to maintain the high quality atmosphere we strive for at HAF.  For this reason, and to maintain consistency of action, the following rule enforcement criteria has been developed:

Reminder 1*:  Member is contacted privately and respectfully reminded of the forum rules.
Reminder 2*:  Member is privately given a stern reminder about the rules and made aware of the enforcement process.
Strike 1:  Private Warning and/or Public Warning***.
Strike 2:  Public Warning.
Strike 3:  User added to "Restricted" group as a chance to correct their behavior prior in lieu of banning.****
Strike 4:  You're out...one week ban**.
Strike 5:  Permanently banned.*****

*Reminder 1 and 2 are optional steps which may be used at the moderator's discretion.  
**Users who return from their temporary forum 'vacation' run the risk of being banned permanently if they repeat rule infractions they have already been warned about.  Permanent bans will be issued at the discretion of the moderators and will be handed out immediately for spammers or members who post illegal conduct.
***Administrators and moderators of HAF reserve the right to modify the above procedures either permanently or temporarily as is needed to maintain the desired forum atmosphere.
****Restricted users can only post in the "Getting to Know You" section of the forum.  This step is an optional kindness, those that complain about it rather than changing their actions will be jumped into the 1 week ban.
*****Strikes are erased from the HAF system on a regular basis.  This means if you, for instance, got a strike in 2009 then again in 2011 that you would still be on strike 1.  The intention of this system is to get rid of repeat offenders, not to excessively punish those who mess up on occasion.