CRIMINAL HARASSMENT (Stalking)
Though the term “stalking” is somewhat new to the
modern lexicon, the behavior itself is not new to human experience. The conduct
generally associated with stalking –following, spying, unwanted calling/writing,
accosting, harassing, and threatening-is as old as the history of human
relationships. Yet, it has only been within the last decade and a half that we
have recognized such behavior as socially criminal.
Traditionally, the general perceptions of stalking involve some dark and malicious character following and even spying on an unsuspecting person. However, stalking is less about surveillance of victims than it is about contact with them. If stalkers only wished to view the objects of their obsession from afar, they would not pose a serious safety risk. Stalkers, by their very nature, want more. They want contact. They want a relationship with their victims. They want to be part of their victims' lives. And, if they cannot be a positive part of their victims' lives, they will settle for a negative connection to their victims. It is this mind set that not only makes them “stalkers” but also makes them dangerous.
Typically, stalkers resort to some of the following behavior:
While most of these behaviors alone may not in
and of themselves explicitly communicate a threat, the number, nature,
and context in which they occur may well communicate an implied
threat. It is this element of threat to the safety of another that makes the
conduct a crime and most legal definitions of stalking specifically address the
presence of an element of threat.
DEMOGRAPHICS OF THE STALKER
The demographics related to stalkers are both broad and diverse. As
empirical evidence now shows, virtually anyone can be a stalker.
Stalkers come from all walks of life and socioeconomic backgrounds. Despite
their demographic diversity, data shows that some characteristics are more
common among stalkers than others.
The one trait all stalkers share is that they suffer from a personality or
mental disorder, if not both.
DEMOGRAPHICS OF STALKING VICTIMS
Just as anyone can be a stalker, virtually anyone
can be a stalking victim. The characteristics of stalking victims typically cut
across all demographic boundaries. But again, some characteristics are more
common than others among stalking victims.
There is little doubt that stalking has a tremendous impact on the lives of
those who are targeted. Indeed, many victim service professionals contend that
the threat of violence inherent in stalking cases can take a higher toll on its
victims than those who have been victims of completed acts of violence. The
following are signs of stalking-related stress:
The 1998 NIJ study indicated that 30% of women
and 20% of men in stalking cases sought psychological counseling as a result of
the victimization (Tjaden and Theonnes 1998). Moreover, many victims experience
a loss of personal support systems at the very moment they need them most.
Stalking victims often turn to family, friends, and co-workers for help,
guidance, and emotional support. However, given the intractability of many
stalking cases, victims often find that their friends, co-workers, neighbors,
and even their family members are unable to sustain levels of long-term
support.
Additionally, the economic security of stalking
victims may be shattered as a result of their victimization. The NIJ study
provides an empirical perspective indicating that 25% of stalking victims lost
time from work as a result of being targeted and another 7% said that they were
unable to return to work altogether. In some more egregious cases, victims have
been fired by unsympathetic employers unwilling to accommodate special needs of
victim employees.
Each stalker is different just as every stalking
case is different, and it is virtually impossible to construct a single
strategy that is an appropriate response in all stalking cases. Response
strategies must be tailored to fit the unique circumstances surrounding each
case.
Given the complexities involved, any victim is
unlikely to have the experience and knowledge to craft an effective response
strategy without assistance. Victims' strategic planning is better accomplished
with the advice and active support of victim service professionals who have
extensive experience in the management of stalking cases. For this reason, the
best advice anyone could offer a stalking victim is to seek the assistance of
victim service professionals at the earliest point possible.
A qualified service professional will first
consult with the victim on risk-assessment. Based on the assessment, victims
and service professionals will next jointly develop a safety plan or overall
response strategy which will best serve victims' interests. Often, victims are
the best judges of the threat and the likely reaction that stalkers may have to
any conceived strategy. No matter how carefully an initial plan is thought out,
victims and advocates must be willing to alter the plan as circumstances
warrant. The approach that may make the most sense upon first inspection may
prove ineffective or even counterproductive when tested against real-life
circumstances. Thus, both victims and their service providers--in conjunction
with other allied professionals--must be willing to revisit and adjust their
strategies and plans as events evolve. This dynamic partnership has proven to
be most effective.
While each case is unique and must be addressed
with a unique set of strategies, the vast array of options may appear daunting
to the victim. Skilled service providers, however, can help victims find their
way through the buffet of options so that victims can piece together response
strategies.
What follows is a list of these strategies for
stalking victims as developed by the National Center for Victims of Crime (NCVC
1999; LAPD 1993). Although this list is not intended to be comprehensive, the
strategies are representative of alternatives that victims and service
providers may want to consider when developing response plans.
The criminal
harassment provisions have only been in force since 1993. A significant factor
in the swift enactment of section 264 was the increasing concern among criminal
justice personnel that existing Criminal Code provisions did not
adequately capture “stalking” conduct, which was emerging as a new form of
violence against women.
CRIMINAL HARASSMENT
No person shall,
without lawful authority and knowing that another person is harassed or
recklessly as to whether the other person is harassed, engage in conduct
referred to in subsection (2) that causes that other person reasonably, in all
the circumstances, to fear for their safety or the safety of anyone known to
them.
Prohibited Conduct
(a) repeatedly following from place to place
the other person or anyone known to them;
(b) repeatedly communicating with, either directly or
indirectly, the other person or anyone known to them;
(c) besetting or watching the dwelling-house, or place
where the other person, or anyone known to them, resides, works, carries on
business or happens to be; or
(d) engaging in threatening conduct
directed at the other person or any member of their family.
Punishment
Every person who contravenes this section is guilty of (a) an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten years; or (b) an offence punishable on summary conviction.
MURDER IN COMMISSION OF OFFENCE
Criminal Harassment
Irrespective of
whether a murder is planned and deliberate on the part of any person, murder is
first degree murder when the death is caused by that person while committing or
attempting to commit the criminal harassment offence and the person committing
that offence intended to cause the person murdered to fear for the safety of
the person murdered or the safety of anyone known to the person murdered.
It is important to keep in mind that some cases
do not follow any pattern and may shift between categories as they evolve.
Thus, these categories are only useful as broad guidelines to aid in the
discussion and analysis of stalking as an emerging category of crime.
SIMPLE OBSESSION STALKERS
This category represents 60% of all stalking
cases. Many simple obsession cases are actually extensions of a previous
pattern of domestic violence and psychological abuse (ex husbands/wives,
girlfriends/boyfriends, domestic partners). The only difference is that the
abuse occurs in different surroundings and through slightly altered tactics of
intimidation. Thus, the dynamics of power and control that underlie most
domestic violence cases are often mirrored in simple obsession stalking cases.
Stalking behaviors observed in many domestic
violence cases are motivated by the stalker's lack of self-esteem and feelings
of powerlessness. Indeed, abuser/stalkers attempt to raise their own
self-esteem by demeaning and demoralizing those around them. In most cases,
they target their former spouses. The exercise of power and control over their
victims gives stalkers a sense of power and self-esteem that they otherwise
lack. In this way, the victim not only becomes the stalker's source of
self-esteem but also becomes the sole source of the stalker’s identity. Thus,
when victims attempt to remove themselves from such controlling situations,
stalkers often feel that their power and self-worth have been taken from them.
In such cases, stalkers will often take drastic steps to restore personal
self-esteem. It is when stalkers reach this desperate level that they may feel
they have "nothing to lose" and become most dangerous. This
dynamic makes simple obsession stalkers dangerous, as individuals and as a
group.
Simple obsession is the most likely category of stalking to result in
murder. Thirty percent of all female homicides were committed by intimate
partners. Domestic violence victims run a 75% higher risk of being murdered by
their partners. "If I can't have you, nobody will," has become all
too common a refrain in cases that escalate to violence. Many of these cases
end with the murder of the victim followed by the suicide of the stalker.
LOVE OBSESSION STALKERS
In this category, stalkers and victims are casual
acquaintances (neighbors, co-workers) or even complete strangers
(fan/celebrity). Primarily, stalkers in this category seek to establish a
personal relationship with the object of their obsession--contrary to the
wishes of their victims. Love obsession stalkers tend to have low self-esteem
and often target victims who they perceive to have exceptional qualities and
high social standing. These stalkers seek to raise their own self-esteem by
associating with those whom they hold in high regard.
Love obsession stalkers become so focused on
establishing a personal relationship with their victims that they often invent
detailed fantasies of a nonexistent relationship. They literally script the
relationship as if it were a stage play. However, when victims choose not to
participate in the stalker's imagined passion-play, the stalker may try to
force victims into assigned roles. Often, love obsession stalkers are so
desperate to establish a relationship--any relationship--that
they "settle" for negative relationships, explaining why some
stalkers are willing to engage in destructive or violent behavior in an
irrational attempt to "win the love" (more likely the attention) of
their victims. Such obsessive reasoning might explain why John Hinkley believed
he would win the heart of Jodi Foster by shooting President Ronald Reagan. It
might also explain why a man who proclaimed himself to be John Lennon's "biggest
fan" shot him dead on the sidewalk outside of his home.
EROTOMANIAC STALKERS
By definition, erotomaniacs are delusional and
consequently, virtually all suffer from mental disorders--most often
schizophrenia.
Unlike "simple" and "love"
obsession stalkers who seek to establish or reestablish personal relationships
with their victim, erotomaniacs delude themselves into believing that such a
relationship already exists between themselves and the objects of
their obsession.
Though relatively rare (comprising fewer than 10%
of all cases), erotomania stalking cases often draw public attention because
the target is usually a public figure or celebrity. Like love obsession
stalkers, erotomaniacs attempt to garner self-esteem and status by associating
themselves with well-known individuals who hold high social status.
Erotomaniacs seek fame and self-worth by basking in the celebrity of others.
While the behavior of many erotomaniacs never escalates to violence, or even to
threats of violence, the irrationality that accompanies their mental illness
presents particularly unpredictable threats to victims.
Perhaps the best-known case of erotomania
stalking involved a series of incidents perpetrated against the popular late
night talk show host, David Letterman. This woman, first found hiding in Mr.
Letterman's closet, believed she was his wife. On numerous other occasions she
was caught trespassing on his property. With her young son in tow, she once
scaled the six foot wall surrounding Letterman's property. On another occasion,
she was arrested while driving Letterman's stolen car. When questioned by
police, she confidently stated that her husband was out of town and that she
was going grocery shopping so she would have dinner ready for him upon his
return. Despite the treatment she received during her many involuntary stays at
a mental institution, she eventually took her own life.
VENGEFUL/TERRORIST STALKERS
The final stalking category is fundamentally
different from the other three. Vengeance stalkers do not seek a
personal relationship with their targets. Rather, vengeance/terrorist stalkers
attempt to elicit a particular response or a change of behavior from their
victims. When vengeance is their prime motive, stalkers seek only to punish
their victims for some wrong they perceive the victim has visited upon them. In
other words, they use stalking as a means to "get even" with their
enemies.
The most common scenario in this category
involves employees who stalk employers after being fired from their job.
Invariably, the employee believes that their dismissal was unjustified and that
their employer or supervisor was responsible for unjust treatment. One bizarre
variation on this pattern is the case of a scout master who was dismissed for
inappropriate conduct and subsequently decided to stalk his entire former
scout troop scouts and scout leaders alike.
A second type of vengeance or terrorist stalker, the political stalker, has motivations that parallel those of more traditional terrorists. That is, stalking is a weapon of terror used to accomplish a political agenda. Utilizing the threat of violence to force the stalking target to engage in or refrain from engaging in particular activity. For example, most prosecutions in this stalking category have been against anti-abortionists who stalk doctors in an attempt to discourage the performance of abortions.