Cause and Effect World

Stalking: hope it never happens to you

Have you ever been stalked or harassed by a stranger? Did you know that unless you can prove you have a substantive relationship with the abuser, you have no way to keep the person away from you under current law? So, if you are being stalked by a neighbor or a stranger, there is nothing you can do except take self-defense classes, and good luck if they bring a bomb to your workplace.

Did you also know that if you have been attacked in your home, raped, sexually assaulted or stalked, your landlord can evict you??

And there’s more…. did you know that if you have to take time off from work to deal with these issues, you currently have no protection from being penalized in the workplace???

Some facts:

• One million women and 371,000 men are stalked annually in the United States.
• 81% of women who are stalked by an intimate partner are also physically assaulted by that partner, and 76% of women who are killed by an intimate partner are also stalked by that partner.
• 74.2% of stalking victims report that being stalked interfered with their employment, 26% of stalking victims lose time from work as a result of the crime, and 7% of stalking victims never return to work.

Saturday, March 8, State Senator Pamela Resor (D - Middlesex/Worcestor County) and Isa Woldeguiorguis of Jane Doe Inc. were on the show to talk about legislation they are sponsoring to address these issues: why the legislation is needed, what happened at a hearing that took place on March 4, what happens next, and why they have taken the time to devote themselves to these issues.

Below is a letter from Senator Resor’s Office and Jane Doe Inc. to Massachusetts legislators:

Dear Legislator,

Many of you may recall the passage of Sandy’s Law in 2000 which stiffened the penalties for stalking in Massachusetts. This bill was named in memory of Sandra Berfield, a waitress from Everett, who was continually stalked by a restaurant patron and then killed by a home-made package bomb delivered by her stalker. In Sandy’s case, she sought protection but did not qualify for the Ch. 209A domestic protective order because she had no prior relationship with her stalker.

As we recognize January as Stalking Awareness Month, we are reminded that while the passage of Sandy’s law brought some increase in legal protections to victims of stalking, there are still serious gaps in the law and a need for increased public awareness and action about this issue.

This packet has been put together as a collaborative effort between Senator Pamela Resor, Feel Safe Again and Jane Doe Inc, in order to provide you with facts about stalking, resources to assist you in responding to your constituents and information about three important pieces of pending legislation.

Senator Pam Resor is the chief sponsor of Senate Bill 1002: Harassment Prevention Bill which will greatly increase safety for all victims of crime, particularly stalking. Under current law, to obtain a criminally enforceable protective order (209A), a victim needs to prove that they have a substantive relationship with the abuser. This means that a neighbor being stalked by another neighbor or a rape victim being stalked by the perpetrator is not protected currently. The Harassment Prevention Bill would address this discrepancy in the law. This legislation is currently in the Judiciary Committee awaiting a public hearing.

Senator Cynthia Creem is the chief sponsor of Senate Bill 755: An Act Relative to Housing Discrimination against Victims of Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Stalking. This bill prohibits discrimination and promotes safety for victims. Currently victims of domestic violence, rape, sexual assault and stalking have little legal protection from landlords who attempt to evict them because she/he was a victim of one of these crimes.

Senator Cynthia Creem is also the chief sponsor of Senate Bill 1057: An Act to Establish Employment Leave and Safety Remedies to Victims of Domestic Violence, which would protect employees who are victims of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking from being penalized in the workplace for taking time off to address issues related to being a victim of such crimes and creates important model workplace safety and policy procedures for employers.

Click here to listen to the interview (right-click to download file).