A dear friend of the family died as a result of stalking. The fear that
the stalker instilled in her grew until it caused psychotic results. Our
friend began to hear sounds that weren't there. Every light that shone
in her window, she feared came from the stalker's truck. Many of her
nights were spent wondering if he would break into her apartment. All

of this resulted in her early demise. The police were called, however,
they soon got tired of her calls, and did very little to alleviate her
situation. Some nights friends came over to spend the night so that she
could get some rest. Other times she resorted to sleeping elsewhere
other than her apartment, even if it mean paying. She spent a lot of her
savings sleeping away from her home.

Another friend was stalked by this same man. Her daughter noticed that
he was following the car. At first she felt it was just a coincidence,
but as she watched, over time, she observed that it was the same man
riding behind her mother's car too many times. Upon informing my friend,
she decided to end the stalking. One day as the man rode behind her,
she turned her car around and swung up to his. She got out and pointed
her finger at him and warned him never to stalk her again or he would
pay for it. Evidently she scared him enough that he never bothered to
follow her again.

So in both instances it was the same man, but both instances ended up
with different outcomes. I know of another case where a man stalked a
lady and her daughter for seven years. He never did anything physically
to them, but his literal presence terrorized them to the degree that
they would not leave to go outside if he was around their home. They,
too, called the police, however, in this case, the police was very
apathetic. They, of course, asked for the license plate number, and
then said they would need to be on the scene to see him stalking.

Stalking, to me, is an invasion of one's privacy. The stalker is sick
mentally. Because of his mental state, he poses a psychological threat
to a normal individual. He enters one's mind space, and seeks to possess
it. As in the case of our friend, he stayed on her mind until the day she
died. If a stalker is not dealt with, there is danger that his/her mental
state may worsen and turn into violent behavior. No one can feel safe with
the knowledge that a stalker is lurking, and may appear at any time.

Because stalking is not limited to gender, there are women who also stalk
men. In their sickness, they do often do violent things to the man, or
behave in an abnormal way around him, thus threatening his safety. I have
known of women slashing tires or threatening men's friends in their sick
state of mind. A relative of mine was forced to lock her friend's car
in the garage whenever he came to visit with her. His stalker would drive
by my relative's house looking for his car. Stalkers create anxiety and
fear for everyone involved.

There are laws against stalking, however, due to the lack of evidence,
the authorities do not always pursue these allegations. This victims of
stalkers are often left without recourse. Trying to handle these episodes
without adequate help is not only stressful, but can lead to many emotional
and physical illnesses. It is my assessment that stalking has proven fatal,
and is indeed, harmful in a society where everyone deserves to be able to
come and go freely. This is our God-given right. Stalkers violate it.

Learn more about this author, Toni Doswell.
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