North Carolina General Statute 14-277.3
Willfully and on more than one occasion following or is in the presence of another person without legal purpose with the intent to cause reasonable fear either for the person's safety or the safety of their immediate family or close personal associates; or with intent to cause substantial emotional distress by placing that person in fear of death, bodily injury, or continued harassment, and that in fact causes that person substantial emotional distress.
Are You Concerned You Are Being Stalked?
University Police have prepared an informative book, Are You Being Stalked?
http://www.uncw.edu/ba/police/docs/stalking.pdf
How Common is Stalking?
A recent study by the National Institute of Justice found that stalking was far more prevalent than anyone had imagined: 8% of American women and 2% of American men will be stalked in their lifetimes. That’s 1.4 million American stalking victims every year.
The majority of stalkers have been in relationships with their victims, but a significant percentage either never met their victims, or were just acquaintances - neighbors, friends or co-workers.
Stalking: Protecting Yourself
- Tell others you are being stalked: your family, friends, neighbors, RA and RC, the Office of the Dean of Students and apartment manager if you live off campus.
- Carry a cell phone.
- Do not set a routine for your daily activities. Inform others of changes to your route and other variations.
- Change your phone number to an unpublished number and get caller ID if it is available.
- Seek assistance and a threat assessment by a trained professional, e.g., law enforcement, victim services, and obtain a Domestic Violence Protection or Restraining Order if recommended.
- Contact the UNCW Police Department for escorts.
- Utilize any of 100+ UNCW emergency call boxes to contact University Police.
- Maintain a stalking log detailing the date, time, length of unwanted calls, emails, instant messages and direct contact by the person stalking you, and file a police report for every contact made by the stalker.
- File a police report for every contact made by the stalker.
- Contact the CARE office at 962-CARE. We can provide information and assistance on other things you can do to protect yourself.
Cyberstalking
- Cyberstalking can be defined as threatening behavior or unwanted advances directed at another using the Internet and other forms of online and computer communications.
- Cyberstalkers target their victims through chat rooms, message boards, discussion forums, and e-mail.
- It can take many forms such as: threatening or obscene e-mail; spamming (in which a stalker sends a victim a multitude of junk e-mail); live chat harassment or flaming (online verbal abuse); leaving improper messages on message boards or in guest books; sending electronic viruses; sending unsolicited e-mail; tracing another person's computer and Internet activity, and electronic identity theft.
- Similar to stalking off-line, online stalking can be a terrifying experience for victims, placing them at risk of psychological trauma, and possible physical harm. Many cyberstalking situations do evolve into off-line stalking, and a victim may experience abusive and excessive phone calls, vandalism, threatening or obscene mail, trespassing, and physical assault.
Cyberstalking is a crime in North Carolina. If are concerned that you are being cyberstalked, contact University Police at 962-2222
Additional Stalking-Related Resources
Stalking Resource Center- National Center for Victims of Crime
http://www.ncvc.org/src/Main.aspx
