Stalking not just a celebrity issue

January is National Stalking Awareness Month. The following commentary is provided by Women In Need Victim Services, Chambersburg.

Stalking, when in the news, highlights celebrities brought to their wits end because of an obsessed fan following them around, calling, making threats, or claims of love. Stalking in real-life involves ordinary people who often know their stalker. According to the National Center for Victims of Crime and the Stalking Resource Center, 1 in 12 women and 1 in 45 men will be stalked at some point in their lives. Stalking can occur as part of a relationship, when the relationship ends, or without the victim ever having had contact with the stalker. Additionally, the Center shares that the average duration of stalking is two years and one study found that 3 of 4 women murdered by intimate partners had been stalked by that partner before they were killed.

In mid-December of last year Senators Joseph Biden (D-DE) and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced a resolution designating January as National Stalking Awareness Month to the U.S. Senate. January 2008 marks the fifth year for the Senate to consider and pass this resolution.

"Stalking is not a one-time occurrence; this is a crime that leaves its victim fearful 24 hours a day, seven days a week. No place - not even home - is safe if a stalker knows where the victim lives. Victims spend their days and nights looking over their shoulder, often changing jobs, relocating their homes, and even changing their appearance to escape the stalker," said Sen. Biden, author of the landmark Violence Against Women Act. In many instances, victims usually know their stalkers and 81 percent of women victims are also physically assaulted by their stalker. "January is National Stalking Awareness Month - the perfect opportunity for parents, lawmakers and community leaders to carefully review state and local laws on stalking and insist that laws keep pace with technology and protect victims."

Today's technology has made stalking much easier. Technology empowered stalkers can harass or threaten their victims (or urge others to do so) via e-mail, or Web sites set up to harm the victim. They may install spyware on their victim's computer or plant global positioning systems (GPS) in their victim's car to track their victim's travels. Social networking websites, such as Facebook and MySpace, cell phones with surveillance devices, even running shoes implanted with GPS devices, may provide additional opportunities for stalkers to harm their victims.

"With the world constantly changing, it is important for our laws to keep pace with the changes," said WIN Executive Director, Barbara Channing. "All fifty states have laws against stalking, but only one-third of states have included language relating to stalking via electronic means. We are seeing an increased fear of electronic stalking within our community, and unfortunately, it's a very real concern for many victims. With this kind of stalking, the victim may not even know it is happening."

One of the goals of National Stalking Awareness Month is increasing the community's knowledge about this crime. "Stalking is an insidious crime that can be hard to detect or prove, leaving victims in fear and uncertain of where to turn," said Channing. "It is important that they know help is available, they will be believed and can feel safe again."

For more information, or if you know someone who is being stalked, call WIN at 800-621-6660. Additional information about stalking can also be obtained at www.ncvc.org/src