A pair of young females recently got in touch with Cork’s Sexual Violence Centre, troubled by a man who persistently drove through their cul de sac almost every night. “Every evening, he pauses outside their residence for approximately ten minutes before moving on,” stated Mary Crilly, the co-founder of the Sexual Violence Centre. The man is unknown to both of them, and the reason for his disturbing visits remains a mystery.
Crilly warns that it’s simply a matter of time before the man elevates his activities. Their dread is that eventually, he won’t just stop outside their home, he may actually enter.
Indicative instances of stalking are provided by those aiding victims. Natalie O’Reilly, the domestic abuse coordinator at Longford Women’s Link, observes that places such as gyms, hair parlors, and beauty salons are becoming frequent outing spots for individuals tracking their ex-partners post-breakup.
O’Reilly elaborates, stating that if he shows up at a woman’s gym, he exerts control as she will avoid returning there, restricting her world.
Recounting another instance, a woman O’Reilly assisted left the gym hastily via the fire exit upon noticing her ex-partner at the entrance, clearly agitated and without any gym gear or discernible intention to work out. Given that her car was parked outside, if challenged, his claim would be that he was only there to join.
The widespread Netflix TV series “Baby Reindeer,” which is based on the personal experiences recounted by Richard Gadd, the creator, has brought the issue of stalking to public attention by portraying its destructive effect on a male victim. Also, recent changes to Irish law now recognize stalking as an independent crime with a potential sentence of up to a decade, which has brought additional attention to the issue.
O’Reilly also notes that with technological advances, stalking has evolved beyond the stereotypical image of an individual hiding in the bushes outside a door. She stresses, “Culprits no longer need to lurk in the undergrowth or tail the victim in their vehicle.”
Technology’s role in the rise of stalking has become a key concern, as it now permeates even the sanctuary of our homes. We now find an array of monitoring devices at our disposal, from cameras to video doorbells which allow us to oversee any conversations happening at our doorsteps from any location. Our phones serve as tracking devices and even innocuous gadgets like baby monitors and smart speakers such as Amazon’s Alexa are potentially used for stalking purposes, cites Sonya Fitzmaurice, colleague of O’Reilly’s at Longford Women’s Link.
Stalking can involve the sinister practice of shadowing a person’s movements, making unwelcome appearances anywhere their target goes, from being outside the grocery store to showing up at their kids’ sports club. Fitzmaurice provides the chilling example of a stalker who followed his ex-partner in a supermarket car park, stalked her throughout the store, and imitated her movements even to the point of using the same checkout counter. His single purchase only added to the intimidation tactics.
The implementation of new laws last November gives victims and law enforcement the impetus to address instances where behaviours can intensify to the level of physical, sexual assault and at times, even culminate in murder. Tara Farrell, the CEO of Longford Women’s Link, says that stalking played a part in the lion’s share of the 300 cases of domestic abuse that the centre dealt with last year.
An inter-agency forum, including local police, HSE staff and frontline workers, has been established to co-ordinate a response to domestic violence. Last year, a two-day training workshop was organized, featuring Prof. Jane Monckton Smith, the developer of an eight-stage homicide timeline which identifies specific stages in which coercive relationships can escalate to murder. Farrell reported that the training benefitted 140 frontline workers from six agencies, highlighting that stalking is a significant facet in Smith’s eight stages of homicide.
Dr Ciara Staunton and Dr Catherine O’Sullivan, authors of a study conducted at the University College Cork in collaboration with the Cork Sexual Violence Centre, assert that the recording of convictions will shed light on the prevalence of stalking behaviour. Their recent study evoked a major response, exceeding 1,000 replies, which greatly surprised the research team being led by forensic psychologist, Dr Staunton.
The analysis of 892 cases by the UCC team indicated that 9% of the victims were male, while 257 incidents involved strangers. A majority of 468 cases were attributed to partners or ex-partners, 206 to acquaintances, 131 to friends, and 107 to colleagues at work.
The effects of stalking are severe, with 750 victims experiencing anxiety, 265 reporting suicidal thoughts, 148 instances of self-harm, and 92 attempted suicides. The pattern of stalking behaviour included unwarranted texts, emails or WhatsApp messages (in 623 cases), unwanted advances and being shadowed (509 cases each), the stalker lingering outside the home or other frequented places (507 cases), and invasive technological surveillance (506 cases).
Mary Crilly from Cork’s Sexual Violence Centre points out that stalking behaviours are focused on imposing power and instilling fear. The overwhelming response that the study received did not come as a surprise to her, since about 800 people registered for a stalking-focused webinar during the Covid pandemic, which the Centre hosted.
Since the commencement of stalking-case referrals by the Crime Victims Helpline to the Cork Centre around a year prior, they have been obtaining two to three reports weekly. Several victims were compelled to give up their work or relocate due to stalking incidents. One notable instance involved a woman who had to move away from a rural area as her popular stalker continued to harass her, largely unchecked by the community.
“However, the offender does not just manipulate the victim, but also those around them. He’ll argue, ‘I did nothing. I merely dropped by to see if she needed assistance in the garden’. Consequently, individuals often move away to safeguard their mental wellbeing. Still, he continues to exert control if he desires to maintain hold over the victim.”
Sexual assault response teams report, “This could be one of the most devastating experiences of their lives.”
Crilly has also observed “Baby Reindeer” and commented on its potency in terms of creating consciousness. She said, “It displays how onerous it can be to extricate oneself from a situation and how the other party can possess such delusions.” Furthermore, she expressed that “a significant portion of the people we encounter have often sought help from the police.”
Crilly felt the show highlighted how individuals are apprehensive about offending their stalker, or initially sympathise with them. They may initially believe they are overreacting and are unwilling to be disrespectful.
Sarah Benson, the Women’s Aid CEO, comments that stalking can sometimes manifest as ‘romantic inundation’, where the offender persistently leaves flowers at the victim’s residence or sends them numerous gifts. She warns that responses to such insidious behaviour could inadvertently minimise the seriousness of the situation. Victims have reported to us that even law enforcement or friends could brush it off with comments like, ‘I’d be delighted to receive flowers myself,’ she says.
However, such unwelcome flowers and gifts reveal an “obsessive focus” that could lead to grave sexual assault or even end in murder, warns Benson. She is grateful for the novel legislation propelled by the advocacy of Una Ring and Eve McDowell. This law has been enacted but not implemented yet. It is paramount because it offers protection for individuals targeted by non-partners.
She explains, “If the offender is a current or former intimate partner, you can use the domestic violence law to petition for protective orders. However, in situations where there hasn’t been an intimate relationship, there’s no available civil restraint order. Though it’s in the legislation, it hasn’t yet been implemented.”
A representative from the Department of Justice communicated that the majority of the regulations in the law have been initiated from the 1st of November, 2023, by the Justice Minister, Helen McEntee. Additionally, he mentioned that the fifth section of the Act of 2023, responsible for instituting the civil order system, “still awaits commencement”, as these regulations need more preparations from the Court Service.
“However, this task is in an advanced stage,” he added. He also stated that the Minister anticipates establishing the date of operation for these regulations in the near future.