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STALKING INFORMATION
According to findings from the 1998 National Violence Against Women Survey, eight percent of women and two percent of men in the United States have been stalked in their lifetime. It is estimated that over one million women and nearly 375,000 men are stalked annually in the United States.
Crimes of stalking can have a devastating and, too often, deadly, impact on their victims. When unwanted attention and personal contacts-such as phone calls, letters, emails, and other unsolicited personal contacts-escalate, the results can have a profound impact on victims--psychologically, physically, and financially. Stalking strikes terror in the hearts and lives of victims, and comprises a real and frightening threat to them, their loved ones and our communities.
Today, all 50 states and the District of Columbia have anti-stalking statutes. Tremendous efforts nationwide over the past decade have resulted in improved prevention and responses that involve law enforcement, prosecutors and courts, victims services providers, employers, and community members.
According to David Beatty, Executive Director of Justice Solutions, there is a wide range of information and safety resources available to assist stalking victims. "It is critical that stalking victims report the crimes to law enforcement and carefully document the intimidating and threatening behavior," Beatty said. "Law enforcement and prosecutors across the nation can provide help in arresting and prosecuting stalkers, and victim assistance programs can provide information about stalking victims' rights and measures to enhance their personal safety, including safety planning."
Stalking is a crime that puts victims, their loved ones, friends, and colleagues at risk. Your chances of becoming a victim of stalking are far greater than that of becoming a victim of a political terrorist.
Often, stalkers know no boundaries in their intimidating and sometimes violent behavior. No one should have to live out their lives in the shadow of fear cast by those who target them with terrorist threats of violence. We should all do what we can to provide support to stalking victims, and to collaborate to promote safety in our homes, neighborhoods, and workplaces.
How Much Do You Know About Stalking?
The legal definition of stalking varies from one jurisdiction to another. However, in general, stalking can be defined as a course of behavior directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for their physical safety.
See how much you know by answering the quiz below.
1. The majority of stalking victims are celebrities.
a. True
b. False
2. How many people are stalked in America every year?
a. 400,000
b. 1 Million
c. 800,000
d. 1.4 million
3. What percentage of women who are stalked by an intimate partner are also sexually assaulted by that partner?
a. 11%
b. 21%
c. 31%
d. 41%
4. The majority of women stalked by their current or former intimate partner are also physically assaulted by that partner.
a. True
b. False
5. What percentage of stalking victims are men?
a. 5%
b. 11%
c. 22%
d. 44%
6. What percentage of stalkers are women?
a. 2%
b. 9%
c. 13%
d. 25%
7. Most stalking victims who had obtained a protective order against their stalker had the protective order violated by the stalker.
a. True
b. False
8. How many states have stalking laws?
a. 25
b. 34
c. 48
d. 50
9. What percentage of male stalking victims are stalked by other men?
a. 10%
b. 25%
c. 40%
d. 60%
10. More than 80 percent of women who were stalked on campus knew their stalker.
a. True
b. False
Answer key:
1. False
2. 1.4 million
3. 31%
4. True
5. 22%
6. 13%
7. True
8. 50
9. 60%
10. True
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