Month focuses on crime of stalking Published Feb. 1, 2010 Sexual Assault Response Program TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- January is National Stalking Awareness Month, a time to focus on a crime that affects 3.4 million victims a year. This year's theme -- "Stalking: Know It. Name It. Stop It." -- challenges the nation to fight this dangerous crime by learning more about it. Stalking is a crime in all 50 states, yet many victims and criminal justice professionals underestimate its seriousness and impact. In one of five cases, stalkers use weapons to harm or threaten victims, and stalking is one of the significant risk factors for homicide of women in abusive relationships. Victims suffer anxiety, social dysfunction and severe depression at much higher rates than the general population, and many lose time from work or have to move as a result of their victimization. Stalking is difficult to recognize, investigate and prosecute. Unlike other crimes, stalking is not a single, easily identifiable crime but a series of acts, a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would case that person fear. Stalking may take many forms, such as assaults, threats, vandalism, burglary, or animal abuse, as well as unwanted cards, calls, gifts, or visits. One in four victims reports that the stalker uses technology, such as computers, global positioning system devices or hidden cameras, to track the victim's daily activities. Stalkers fit no standard psychological profile, and many stalkers follow their victims from one jurisdiction to another, making it difficult for authorities to investigate and prosecute their crimes. Stalking between intimate partners is widespread and often associated with lethal abuse. Despite the enactment of anti-stalking laws in every state, relatively few stalkers are cited for arrested by law enforcement and even fewer are prosecuted. People 18 to 24 years experience the highest rate of stalking. Only 10 percent of stalking victims are stalked by a stranger. Communities that understand stalking, however, can support victims and combat the crime. "If more people learn to recognize stalking," said Michelle Loughlin, Tinker Sexual Assault Response coordinator, "we have a better chance to protect victims and prevent tragedies." For more information on stalking, contact the Sexual Assault Response Program at 734-9293 or the Family Advocacy Program at 734-4390.