I have been stalked. It was a terrible experience. It happened several years ago and thankfully it ended without violence, but I still remember how crazy it made me feel during those awful weeks. On one occasion he chased me, at night, but I managed to make it to my car and get the door locked just as he arrived at the driver’s side window.
So, since I have experienced stalking first hand, it’s not surprising the subject found it’s way into my romantic suspense novel Sunrise Interrupted:
“’Come to me, little one,’ he said aloud in the cab of the vehicle as though doing so would influence the desired outcome. He’d found a good place to get his vehicle off the road the other day, a very convenient hiding spot so he could watch, familiarize himself with her comings and goings. It seemed she was always with someone, especially travelling in those vans, but sooner or later he’d get his chance. All it would take was one misstep, and he’d have her.“
Stalkingawareness.org defines stalking as: “A pattern of behavior directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for the person’s safety or the safety of others; or suffer substantial emotional distress. (Fear) The definition of stalking includes that a reasonable person would feel fear. It is important to note that fear is often masked by other emotions: anger, frustration, hopelessness or despair.”
It was exactly that for me, and while anyone can be a victim of stalking, celebrities are particularly vulnerable because of their high public profile. As well, stalking is not a crime exclusively of the 20th/21st centuries because even Queen Victoria, during her reign in the 1800’s, was not exempt according to Guinnessworldrecords.com:
“Edward ‘the Boy’ Jones (UK) stalked Queen Victoria from 1838 until 1841, repeatedly entering Buckingham Palace to spy on her and steal her underwear. After he had entered her dressing-room, to watch her undress for the night, he was kidnapped by government agents and forced to serve abroad in the Royal Navy for many years.”
Law enforcement personnel have now successfully profiled stalkers and while there are exceptions to this general outline, most fall into a specific category. Says sciencedirect.com:
“The modal stalker is an unemployed or underemployed man in his fourth decade of life. He is single or divorced and has a prior criminal, psychiatric, and drug abuse history. He has a high school or college education, however, and is significantly more intelligent than are other criminals. He does not disproportionately appear in any racial or ethnic group. Suggestive data show that he suffered the loss of a primary caretaker in childhood and a significant loss, usually a job…”
Photo credit: Andie Smith
Celebrity Anne Murray endured a twenty-year battle with a stalker, a male fan obsessed with the Canadian singer. Despite being repeatedly sent to prison for violating numerous probation and court orders, this delusional man remained infatuated with Anne, actually fighting court rulings not to contact her because he believed he had the right to do so. Unfortunately many cases of stalking do go on for years, making the lives of their victims miserable. As well, the crime of stalking involves both genders, although interestingly, according to psychologytoday.com on the subject of stalking, men and women react differently to being stalked:
“How men and women respond differently to unwelcome pursuit
- Victims experience and respond to stalking very differently, often depending on gender.
- When a victim is male, the average ‘stalking campaign’ lasts more than twice as long as when the victim is female, according to research.
- Regarding stalking behavior, men report more acts of vandalism and intrusive communication, whereas women report more following and harassment.
- Men often respond to stalkers in a fashion that is direct, without fear of confrontation, but women are more likely to seek out social support.
We expect crime victims to report. You come home to find your home broken into, your car vandalized, or your purse and credit cards missing, you call the police. Yet with certain types of crimes, victims suffer in silence. This is especially true with stalking. Some people don’t recognize stalking behavior to begin with; other classes of victims, such as men, are less likely to report.
We encourage stalking victims to report their victimization, to ensure their own safety, as well as the safety of future victims. Remember that David Letterman’s stalker, who repeatedly broke into his home and claimed he was her husband, went on to stalk astronaut Story Musgrave—writing him letters and repeatedly calling him. One time she showed up at his home, banged on his doors, and turned on all of his faucets.”
It’s also frighteningly real that stalking can result in life-threatening violence as set out in Thesun.co.uk:
“CREEPING IN FOR THE KILL
Almost all murders are committed by stalkers with 85 per cent of killings committed in victim’s home, study reveals
Published: 02:01, 24 Apr 2017
STALKING plays a part in the vast majority of murders, a study says.
Criminologists found it was involved in 94 per cent of 350 cases they studied.
A study has revealed 94 per cent of murders are committed by a stalker.
Worrying behaviour by the stalker — including control and isolation of the victim — and threats to kill, was identified in 79 per cent of cases.
And all but 15 per cent of the killings occurred in the victim’s home, a team at the University of Gloucestershire found.
Now researchers believe identifying the intention behind the stalking and managing the stalker’s fixation may save lives.
In almost every case the killer displayed obsessive and fixated behaviour associated with stalking…”
Speaking from my own experience, I will never forget how terrified and vulnerable my stalker made me feel. My last sighting of him was when I encountered him face to face on a sidewalk in broad daylight. I stopped, whipped out my cellphone to call police, with whom I had been red flagged on 911 because of my several encounters with that man. He bolted in the opposite direction and sprinted away. I never saw him again.
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorEdenMonroe/
https://books2read.com/Sunrise-Interrupted-by-Eden-Monroe
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