MARICOPA, Calif. -- Police Chief Gene Fretheim recovered several firearms from the Taft police department Tuesday, thus returning to active duty.

The chief of the small police department legally had to turn in his guns Monday after receiving a temporary restraining order, but apparently, the copy he received was invalid.

Fretheim received two different copies of a "notice of hearing or restraining order" document.

The first copy, which Fretheim received Friday, said he had to turn in his guns, which he did Monday. But the other one, ruled valid in court and received Tuesday, says it is just a notice of hearing, and he is not required to surrender his firearms.

"If this is what is going to be allowed, then people who don't like police or have confrontations with police could get the whole county disarmed within the next 30 days if they really wanted to," Fretheim told ABC 23 after recovering his guns.

Had the restraining order been put in effect, Fretheim would have essentially been relegated to administrative duty.

"Based on the changing of this document, somebody's in really serious trouble," Fretheim said. "I understand there's already a Grand Jury investigation already in place about this mess."

The "mess" stems from incidents Fretheim had with what he says were loose dogs on the streets of Maricopa last month.

One of the dogs had been shot with a tranquilizer and was later euthanized at the Taft animal shelter.

In the second incident, Fretheim shot and killed a pit bull that threatened him and other city workers, which prompted Lisa Chavez, the owner of the dog, to file the paperwork for the temporary restraining order, along with three other residents.

"In the past, the police have threatened to prosecute them for making false statements, so my clients are definitely afraid," said Lutie Thompson, Chavez's attorney. "This paper's not going to suddenly make them stop being afraid."

Both Thompson and Chavez are wondering who changed the document. While the alteration allows Fretheim to full duty, Thompson says he's concerned for the safety of his clients.

"Now there's no order restricting him from going near my clients," Thompson said. "Now there's no order preventing him from calling or investigating or doing whatever he can to put my clients in fear."

A hearing on whether a permanent restraining order will be approved goes before a judge on October 15.