STALKING

Dealing With Stalking & Harrassment Campaigns

The laws concerning stalking, sometimes referred to as harassment, vary by jurisdiction, however most share two (sometimes three) components. The first is that your experiences of another person’s actions/behaviors cause you to feel unsafe and at risk. The second is that this happens a number of times, in some cases with a time interval between each incident. The third which is sometimes present is that the person engaging in these activities does so with the purpose of making you feel unsafe. Stalking/Harassment isn’t defined by the activities themselves e.g., in person A breaks up with person B, who repeatedly sends flowers to their home, but person A doesn’t feel threatened/intimidated by this, then even though it’s a repeated action, it’s not stalking. However, if person A was to feel unsafe because of this it would. So, whilst stalking and harassment campaigns may often have similar components such as unwanted communication, it is how that repeated unwanted communication is interpreted and understood by the recipient.

Whilst many associate stalking and harassment with celebrities being stalked by strangers, the truth is that statistically stalking, statistically involves individuals who know each other and are often ex-intimate partners e.g., after a relationship ends a partner begins a harassment/stalking campaign against the other etc., this may be aimed at trying to reconcile the relationship in an attempt to get back with the other partner and/or it may initially be motivated by revenge and the need to right some perceived injustice etc. Many of these types of stalking campaigns are short-lived, may be lasting just a couple of weeks, as a partner starts to get control of their emotions etc., however sometimes these campaigns can go on much longer, with the original reason for engaging in harassment becoming lost and forgotten. When this happens, it becomes something in and of itself with the individual perpetrating acts of harassment almost becoming addicted to the process and unable to stop themselves continuing. Whilst most stalking campaigns don’t result in acts of violence or even the destruction of property etc., they can be extremely emotionally and psychologically debilitating for those that are targeted by them, with individuals living in terror and fearing for their safety.

Many people when they are targeted by a stalker often don’t want to label what they are experiencing as stalking, sometimes because they believe that others will see it as a means of gaining attention and wanting to appear “special” and “important” i.e., they may think that others will see them as wanting to be a type of celebrity with “fans” etc. Often when a campaign has gone on for awhile those being victimized will try and reach out to their stalker, either directly or via a friend/family member and try to reason and rationalize with them. Unfortunately, if a stalker has become addicted to the process, they are not going to be someone that can be reasoned with. Fortunately, most stalking campaigns aren’t long lived because they take a lot of time and effort on behalf of the stalker e.g., repeatedly sending “gifts”, engaging in unwanted communication, carrying out surveillance on their target, whether discreetly or explicitly all take time and effort, however when they do it is important to know how to act and behave. This module takes you through the steps and stages of dealing with a stalking/harassment campaign.

This Course Module Is In The Process Of Being Transferred To This Site

Featured Videos

Gershon Ben Keren Books