Lacking a precise definition, stalking is a complex crime that is often misunderstood and underreported. Stalking behavior is the unwanted or obsessive attention by an individual towards another person. It is often a combination of individual acts that, by themselves, may seem benign. Forty nine States and the District of Columbia have laws against stalking but this crime is only reported to police less than 40% of the time it occurs. Rather, victims of stalkers often change their everyday activities, move in with family, and block or change their contact information. Each year, between 6 million and 7.5 million American adults are victims of stalking, and about 75% of these victims are female. Two-thirds of these female victims are stalked by an intimate partner, 13% by strangers. Stalker behaviors include harassment, intimidation and surveillance of the victim. Many of these victims are also attacked.

Women who are victimized by an intimate partner are much more likely to experience crimes such as physical violence and rape. The presence of a gun in a domestic violence situation increases the risk of fatality by 500%. More than 90% of all female homicide victims are killed by someone they know and more than 75% of these women were stalked before being murdered. Guns are the most common weapon used in the deaths of these women. Previous law only prohibits gun possession among individuals convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence if the abuser has been married to, lived with, or had a child with the victim. However, the 2022 Safer Communities Act extends existing federal law to cover dating abusers who are convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence. It narrows the “boyfriend loophole” by prohibiting someone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence as part of a dating relationship from purchasing or possessing a firearm for at least five years.

Pending Legislation: S.321 - Strengthening Protections for Domestic Violence and Stalking Survivors Act of 2023
Sponsor: Sen. Amy Klobuchar (MN)
Status: Senate Committee on the Judiciary
Chairperson: Sen. Dick Durban (IL)