Stalking is illegal. If someone is stalking you, you have the right to seek help from the police, the legal system, and the University.

If you feel that you are in danger, call the police ( 9-1-1 if you are off-campus or 3-9-1-1 if on campus) NOW!

Or, go to a place of safety such as:

• Campus police station
• City police station
• Fire station
• Domestic violence shelter

What is Stalking?
Characteristics of Stalkers
What are the Effects of Stalking?
What Can I Do?
Stalkers & the Net
Stalking Facts
Resources

What is Stalking?

The best definition of stalking is unwanted pursuit. The stalker engages in behaviors that are unwanted and frightening or threatening to the victim. There are many behaviors that can be included in stalking, some examples are:

• Following or surveillance
• Driving by or showing up at your home or place of work
• Sending threatening messages, letters, or emails
• Damaging property
• Verbal threats
• Threats to friends or family
• Physical or sexual assault
• Repeated phone calls

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Characteristics of Stalkers

• Jealous
• Narcissistic (self-focused)
• Obsessive and compulsive
• Falls in love “instantly”
• Manipulative
• Does not take responsibility for own feelings or actions
• Needs to have control over others
• Socially awkward or uncomfortable
• Views self as a victim of society, family and others
• Unable to take “no” for an answer
• Deceptive
• Often switches between rage and “love”
• Difficulty distinguishing between fantasy and reality
• Sense of entitlement (e.g. “You owe me…”)
• Unable to cope with rejection
• Dependent on others for sense of “self”
• Views own problems as someone else’s fault
• May be above average intelligence

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What are the Effects of Stalking?

Stalking can be both frightening and dangerous. Victims of stalking may feel alone, isolated, or ashamed. If the stalking behaviors are not violent or threatening, they may feel that they are overreacting, or may feel guilty that a former partner is so distressed. If the behaviors are violent or threatening, they are likely to feel frightened and have difficulty going about their daily activities. Like sexual assault and intimate partner violence, stalking takes away a person’s control of their life and their activities. It is not uncommon for the victim of stalking to feel depressed and anxious, even after the stalking has ended.

Other Symptoms:

• Victims feel they need to move
• Considered or attempted suicide
• Feelings of powerlessness
• Jumpiness, shakes, panic attacks, hypervigilance, and or exaggerated startle response
• Lifestyle changes
• Increased security
• Curtailed social outings
• Changed workplace, school, or career
• Chronic sleep disturbance
• Appetite disturbance
• Persistent nausea
• Increased alcohol or cigarette consumption
• Excessive fatigue
• Increased frequency and severity of tiredness

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What Can I Do?

Only you know your own situation and you are the best person to make judgments about what you should do. If you are being stalked, however, you do have a number of options to protect yourself and to recover.

• Counseling can help you to assess the dangerousness of the situation, become aware of your options, and help you to cope with the stress involved. The Sexual Assault Office has counselors available who can help you and provide guidance as you make decisions.
  • Calling the police - stalking is illegal and you have a right to protection under the law. The police can also help you to obtain a restraining order, which will guarantee their response if the stalker comes within a certain distance of you or violates the order in other ways. It is important to note, however, that in certain cases restraining orders can escalate the stalking situation.
    • Taking steps to make your environment safer, such as locking doors, installing an alarm system, getting a dog, and getting caller ID or an unlisted number.
    • Telling others about the situation so that they can help you (e.g., roommates, friends, family, partner, your employer). It can be useful to provide them with a picture of the person and a copy of a restraining order, if you have one.
    • Communicate clearly and directly to the stalker that you do not want him/her to contact you again in any way, including phone calls, emails, gifts, showing up at your work or home, contacting your family, friends, or co-workers, or in any other manner.
• It can also be useful to document stalking behaviors, especially if you intend to press charges against the stalker (and even if you are not currently planning on it, you may change your mind, in which case it will be helpful to have the documentation).
  • Save answering machine tapes, gifts, letters and emails.
  • Keep a log of drive-bys, contacts by phone or in-person and other suspicious circumstances.
  • Document the date, time and details of an incident, as well as any witnesses and how the incident made you feel (e.g., threatened, scared, unsafe, etc.)
  • Stalking is often very frightening and can contribute to feelings of being out of control, so it is important that you receive support as you deal with both current or past stalking. Support groups are often helpful, as is talking to a counselor. It is also important that you let the people around you know that you are being stalked, both so that they can provide you emotional support and so that they can call the police if the stalker comes near them or tries to reach you.

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Stalkers & the Net

The Internet has opened new doors for stalkers. Law enforcement agencies now receive reports of cases in which the Internet is used to transmit threatening communication.

Stalkers also use the Internet to access a wealth of personal information about victims in an attempt to scare them. In some cases, the victims address and other personal information is posted online in an effort to encourage others to harm the victim.

Be careful about the personal information you give out online. Many people feel that the Internet gives them an impenetrable curtain of anonymity. This is not the case. Messages can be tracked and recovered by criminal hackers and law enforcement alike.

When buying a product or subscribing to a service, be sure that you limit the amount of personal details you provide online. Remember, many businesses sell or trade your information. So the next time you fill out a survey or contest entry form . . . think twice about the information you're sending into cyberspace.

Always make sure you know whom you're talking to and doing business with on the Internet. Don't give out information in chat rooms that you wouldn't give a stranger on the street.

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Stalking Facts

• 1,006,970 women and 370,990 men are stalked annually in the United States.
• 1 in 12 women and 1 in 45 men will be stalked in their lifetime.
• 77% of female and 64% of male victims know their stalker.
• 87% of all stalkers are men.
• 59% of female victims and 30% of male victims are stalked by an intimate partner.
• 81% of women stalked by a current or former intimate partner are also physically assaulted by that partner.
• 31% of women stalked by a current or former intimate partner are also sexually assaulted by that partner.
• The average duration of stalking is 1.8 years.
• If stalking involves intimate partners, the average duration of stalking increases to 2.2 years.
• 61% if stalkers make unwanted phone calls; 33% sent or left unwanted letters or items; 29% vandalized property; and 9% killed or threatened to kill a family pet.
• 28% of female victims and 10% of male victims obtained a protective order. 68% of female victims and 81% of male victims had the protection order violated. Tjaden & Thoennes. (1998). “Stalking in America,” NIJ.

Sexual Victimization of College Women

• 13% of college women were stalked during one six to nine month period.
• 80% of campus stalking victims knew their stalkers.
• 3 in 10 college women reported being injured emotionally or psychologically from being stalked. Fisher, Cullen, and Turner. (2000). “The Sexual Victimization of College Women,” NIJ/BJS.

Impact of Stalking on Victims

• 56% of women stalked took some type of self-protective measure; often as drastic as relocating (11%). (Tjaden & Thoennes. (1998). “Stalking in America,”NIJ).
• 30% of female victims and 20% of male victims sought psychological counseling. (Tjaden & Thoennes.)
• The prevalence of anxiety, insomnia, social dysfunction, and severe depression is much higher among stalking victims than the general population, especially if the stalking involves being followed or having one’s property destroyed. (Blauus et. al. (2002). “The Toll of Stalking,” J. Interpersonal Viol.)

Stalking & Intimate partner Femicide*

• 76% of femicide victims had been stalked by the person who killed them.
• 67% had been physically abused by their intimate partner.
• 89% of femicide victims who had been physically abused had also been stalked in the 12 months before the murder.
• 79% of abused femicide victims reported stalking during the same period they reported abuse.
• 85% of attempted femicide cases involved at least one episode of stalking within 12 months prior to attempted femicide.
• 54% of femicide victims reported stalking to police before they were killedby their stalkers.
  
  *The murder of a woman.
  McFarlane et al. (1999). “Stalking and Intimate Partner Femicide,,” Homicide Studies.
  
  West Virginia code §61-2-9a addresses stalking, harassment, penalties and definitions. (Contact the sexual assault office for a copy of the code

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Resources