tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/stalking-8898/articlesStalking – The Conversation2024-03-05T14:01:24Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2240492024-03-05T14:01:24Z2024-03-05T14:01:24ZPublishing Taylor Swift’s flight information: Is it stalking or protected free speech?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579690/original/file-20240304-51556-7v39u5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Taylor Swift, flanked by security guards and Donna Kelce, mother of her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, appears at the Super Bowl in February 2024.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://mapi.associatedpress.com/v2/items/528216703c8548edb732773004b4aed9/preview/AP24043163440642.jpg?wm=api&tag=app_id=1,user_id=904438,org_id=101781">Julio Cortez/AP</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/jack-sweeney/?sh=bc38f2170831">Jack Sweeney, a junior at the University of Central Florida</a>, says the First Amendment gives him the right to <a href="https://twitter.com/Jxck_Sweeney">publish publicly available</a> information about the flight paths of private jets owned by the rich and famous – including Taylor Swift. </p>
<p>Swift’s legal team – and <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/taylor-swift-jack-sweeney-elon-musk-private-jet-flights-1867604">many of her fans</a> – say that Sweeney posting the comings and goings of the singer’s private plane on social media is technological stalking.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/2024/02/07/jack-sweeney-taylor-swift-legal-track-private-jets/72505276007/">Sweeney also tracks the private planes</a> owned or used by Elon Musk, Ron DeSantis, Mark Zuckerburg, Bill Gates, several Russian oligarchs and others, using public data from a global flight tracking website, TheAirTraffic.com. </p>
<p>I am an attorney and a <a href="https://lynngreenky.com/">scholar who has written</a> about the <a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/distributed/W/bo156864042.html">boundaries of the First Amendment</a>.</p>
<p>My advice to Mr. Sweeney: The First Amendment is a valuable ally, but its protections might not be available to you in this situation.</p>
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<img alt="A blonde woman wears a sequin bodysuit and holds a microphone in one hand. She raises her arm and shows off her muscles." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579688/original/file-20240304-26-axeg2b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579688/original/file-20240304-26-axeg2b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579688/original/file-20240304-26-axeg2b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579688/original/file-20240304-26-axeg2b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579688/original/file-20240304-26-axeg2b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=610&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579688/original/file-20240304-26-axeg2b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=610&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/579688/original/file-20240304-26-axeg2b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=610&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Taylor Swift performs in Inglewood, Calif., on the Eras Tour on Aug. 7, 2023.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://media.gettyimages.com/id/1584249148/photo/taylor-swift-performs-during-the-eras-tour-concert-at-sofi-stadium.jpg?s=612x612&w=gi&k=20&c=MB2QbNqs8F6MnRY6xXg_qWlfsqEoV2g8xP-iXFfo9cM=">Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images</a></span>
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<h2>The arguments, explained</h2>
<p>Since December 2023, Swift’s attorneys have sent Sweeney <a href="https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/2024/02/07/jack-sweeney-taylor-swift-legal-track-private-jets/72505276007/">multiple cease-and-desist</a> letters demanding that he stop sharing the real-time and precise information about Swift’s plane’s location. The most recent letter that has been made public accuses Sweeney of “<a href="https://time.com/6692227/taylor-swift-cease-desist-letter-jack-sweeney-jet-tracker-emissions/">intentional, offensive, and outrageous conduct</a>” that threatens her safety and well-being. </p>
<p>Swift’s attorneys warn Sweeney that if he continues to publish her private travel information, she will seek legal action against him. </p>
<p>Sweeney, who is 21 years old, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/college-student-tracks-elon-musk-jet-forbes-30-under-30-2023-11">has gained fame, and perhaps a fortune</a>, over the past few years with this work. He has several hundred thousand followers across multiple social media platforms, including Instagram, Mastodon, Discord, Telegram, X – formerly known as Twitter – and Threads.</p>
<p>Sweeney argues that he is merely reposting public information as a matter of public interest. Sweeney also believes the public has a <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2024/2/6/24063220/taylor-swift-jet-public-data-social-media">right to know</a> that Swift and others are “<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68248168">trying to hide the bad PR of (carbon) emissions</a>.” </p>
<p>Sweeney insists that his passion for the environment adds constitutional protection to his activities.</p>
<p>Sweeney is correct that the First Amendment offers robust protection to political speech. Over and over again, the Supreme Court has reminded Americans that protecting <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/2010/09-751">political speech is necessary for a strong democracy</a> – but even the shield of political speech has its limits.</p>
<p>The First Amendment does not protect <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/2002/01-1107">speech that could further a crime</a>. Speech that terrorizes another person, causing them to fear for their life, can be prosecuted. It is no defense that the speaker <a href="https://casetext.com/case/planned-parenthood-v-amer-coalition-of-life">was trying to make a political point</a>.</p>
<h2>The trail of digital data</h2>
<p>Technology makes the act of gathering information easier than ever before. </p>
<p>Corporations and tech-savvy private citizens like Sweeney can forage through the depths of the digital world, finding and publishing information that most people would rather keep confidential. </p>
<p>Today, <a href="https://www.whitecase.com/insight-our-thinking/us-data-privacy-guide">though there are some state and federal privacy protections in place</a>, anyone willing to pay for the data can usually learn about people’s <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/state-of-privacy-laws-in-us/">buying habits</a> or even where they live, work and play. </p>
<p>Dozens of unregulated companies collect this personal information and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/12/19/opinion/location-tracking-cell-phone.html">log people’s movements via mobile phones</a>. They then store that information in large data files.</p>
<p>Sweeney claims his First Amendment right to publish information about others is as vast as his technological ability to gather personal information about celebrities and other high-profile people. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1756462148136403257"}"></div></p>
<h2>Tread carefully</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.justice.gov/ovw/stalking">The Department of Justice defines stalking</a> as “a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for his or her safety or the safety of others or suffer substantial emotional distress.” </p>
<p>If a court determines that Sweeney is stalking Swift – which legally is considered conduct, not speech – his assertion that he is exercising his First Amendment right will not transform his act of publishing flight information into protected speech.</p>
<p>Sometimes, an action or a certain behavior is intended to communicate a message. For example, people have <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/1968/21">worn black armbands</a> in the <a href="https://www.aclu.org/documents/tinker-v-des-moines-landmark-supreme-court-ruling-behalf-student-expression">past to protest the Vietnam War</a>. People also have publicly <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/1988/88-155">burned the American flag</a> to show their disapproval of different political decisions or policies.</p>
<p>Wearing an armband and burning the American flag are not illegal activities, so the First Amendment protects the messages attached to these behaviors. </p>
<p>But if someone’s behavior used to communicate a message is unlawful or harmful, <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/1967/232">the First Amendment will not protect the speaker</a>. In other words, a messenger can be held responsible for any conduct that causes harm, even if the behavior was intended as a form of speech.</p>
<p>Sweeney has not been prosecuted or sued for stalking anybody, so no court has determined if he has indeed engaged in that behavior. But if, as Swift contends, <a href="https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/2024/02/06/jet-tracker-taylor-swift-ucf-jack-sweeney-social-media-twitter-x-reddit-mastadon-bluesky/72491332007/">Sweeney’s actions are simply a more sophisticated form of stalking</a>, the First Amendment will not transform his behavior into protected speech. </p>
<p>So, Mr. Sweeney, back to my advice: Tread carefully. </p>
<p>Technology is powerful, but so is people’s right to be free from terror and harm. The First Amendment may not be available to you to defend your behavior even if you cloak it in political speech.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/224049/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lynn Greenky does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A college junior who has gained a following by sharing high-profile people’s private flight information says that he is sharing public information. Others, like Taylor Swift, say that he is stalking.Lynn Greenky, Professor Emeritus of Communication and Rhetorical Studies, Syracuse UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2003212023-02-22T13:18:30Z2023-02-22T13:18:30ZYou: a criminologist explains Joe Goldberg’s ‘erotomaniac delusions’ in Netflix stalking drama<p>Despite its unusual choice of protagonist – obsessive stalker and serial killer Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley) – Netflix’s You is entering its fourth season, with audiences around the world streaming the many crimes he commits in the name of “love”.</p>
<p>Goldberg’s narration (spoken directly to “you”, the changing subjects of his obsessions) draws viewers in with his backstory and attempt to use logic to explain his behaviour. </p>
<p>His ability to manipulate situations to get the attention of his romantic crushes suggests that with strong belief and dedication to the pursuit of “the one”, we all can make others fall in love with us. As an academic who researches stalking, I think this message is dangerous. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The trailer for part one of You series four.</span></figcaption>
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<p>Persistent unwanted contact from a potential or past suitor is not romantic. It is scary, it is uncomfortable, it is <a href="https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/controlling-or-coercive-behaviour-intimate-or-family-relationship">stalking</a>.</p>
<p>Though You is fictional (based on <a href="https://www.myimperfectlife.com/features/you-series-netflix-books">the novels of Caroline Kepnes</a>), it depicts realistic characters and stalking behaviour. For example, Goldberg uses “neutralisation” (the internal justification used by a person to defend actions deemed wrong by society) to rationalise his violent decisions.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/2089195">A study in 1957</a> found that delinquent youths justified their behaviour through techniques of neutralisation, while stressing they were fully aware that their activities were illegitimate. Research into <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01639625.2022.2088317">cyberstalking and harassment</a> mirrors these findings. </p>
<p>Goldberg’s appeal is that he is aware of his actions but explains his logic in a way that is understandable to an emotional audience, who can relate to feelings of infatuation. This is concerning if some viewers start to mimic these sentiments and act on their emotions as the character they’re watching does.</p>
<p>Goldberg is an exaggerated version of the romantic hero, who wants to court the heroine and live happily ever after. His obsession with locking down “the one” reinforces a fantasy myth that has been <a href="https://theconversation.com/valentines-day-a-brief-history-of-the-soulmate-and-why-its-a-limited-concept-198841">told for decades</a>. Considering the <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/netflixs-you-track-40-million-viewers-1177025/">extensive popularity of the series</a>, I’m concerned by the glamourisation of stalking and disregard of the criminal nature of Goldberg’s coercive tactics.</p>
<h2>What kind of stalker is Joe Goldberg?</h2>
<p>Developed by experts in the field, <a href="https://www.stalkingriskprofile.com/what-is-stalking/types-of-stalking">The Stalking Risk Profile</a> gives professionals structured guidelines to assist them in making informed decisions about the risk and treatment of stalking perpetrators.</p>
<p>The set of categories considers the context and motivations for stalking behaviour, as well as its function. Goldberg exhibits traits of an “intimacy seeker” according to the <a href="https://www.stalkingriskprofile.com/what-is-stalking/types-of-stalking">stalking categories</a>, but as You progresses, he fluctuates between the identities of a “rejected” and “resentful” stalker who feels wronged by others or wants to reconcile with his partner.</p>
<p>Goldberg details obsessions with Guinevere Beck (Elizabeth Lail, series one), Love Quinn (Victoria Pedretti, series two and three) and Marienne Bellamy (Tati Gabrielle, series three and four), believing each time that they are his romantic soulmate.</p>
<p>He researches his romantic interests extensively – mainly through social media – and creates a projection of their character. This <a href="https://dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1145/3134659?casa_token=ttyR4Updo-4AAAAA:JvhKApg3_4aUXe5v6TH13I4JRgTOMpoZkOaNbvzcOycmXuzwc7ACJUps0GwRwAAFFB3xSUWwzivdAw">trend is common</a> among the young audience the series is catered towards.</p>
<p>The behaviour of “intimacy seeking” stalkers is frequently <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0004867413479408">motivated by a serious mental health condition,</a> that involves mistaken ideas about the victim, such as the belief that the two of them are already in a relationship when they aren’t (known as <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/erotomania">erotomaniac delusions</a>).</p>
<p>Creating an emotional bond and an intimate relationship is the motivation for intimacy-seeking stalkers, and Goldberg’s character portrays this effectively.</p>
<h2>How realistic is the stalking in You?</h2>
<p>Goldberg’s infatuations start from this “intimacy seeker” standpoint. But when he manages to secure a relationship with his interests, his paranoia leads him down a path of violence towards anyone who threatens the potential union.</p>
<p>This happens in the form of the stalking, kidnapping and murder of his partner’s friends, former partners and eventually the romantic interest themselves. Goldberg’s motives to stalk continually change, but he constantly relies on his expertise to monitor his victims’ social media and track them down.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Joe Goldberg stalks his first obsession, Guinevere Beck.</span></figcaption>
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<p>He convinces the audience that he simply cannot help himself, though he tries many times to stop his obsessive thought and stalking fixations. But this is where the realism of You fades away. The violent path that Joe goes down <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/psychological-medicine/article/violence-in-stalking-situations/33E703FB8DBC6C820DAEB1F91028EBA8">is less common</a> among real life “intimacy seeking” stalkers. </p>
<p>But hopefully it brings the audience to the realisation that his thought process is chauvinistic, abnormal and that his stalking behaviour is used as a means to commit extreme violence and murder.</p>
<p>As each series of You comes to a close, it becomes apparent that this “average Joe” who spends most of his time obsessing over a romantic muse and manipulates every situation to attain “love”, can never live happily ever after.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/200321/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kritika Jerath does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Creating an emotional bond and an intimate relationship is the motivation for ‘intimacy seeking’ stalkers and Joe Goldberg’s character portrays this effectively.Kritika Jerath, Assistant Professor in Criminology, University of NottinghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1687252021-10-19T20:51:07Z2021-10-19T20:51:07ZAdolescent dating violence affects 1 in 3, but murky policies mean most adults don’t know how to help<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427344/original/file-20211019-18921-4p368j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=278%2C8%2C2717%2C1657&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">There is a clear need for youth-centred policy at the federal and provincial levels that specifically addresses dating violence.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Adolescent dating violence is a serious public health problem in Canada. Dating violence is also a <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/rights-children.html">children’s rights</a> issue, because it violates youths’ right to safe and healthy development.</p>
<p>Adolescent dating violence is the experience of physical, sexual and/or psychological aggression in romantic and sexual relationships between the ages of 11 and 18. It is very important that caregivers, educators and other adults who work with youth understand dating violence. </p>
<p>As researchers who work on preventing dating violence, we wanted to specifically understand if there was policy in Canada specific to dating violence. Our findings demonstrate that we are currently failing to protect youths’ right to be safe in their relationships.</p>
<h2>Prevalence and outcomes</h2>
<p>In Canada, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2021.01.032">one in three</a> youth experience dating violence. However, parents and caregivers are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2011.05.005">unlikely to discuss dating violence</a> with their children. In fact, we find that most people are surprised by how common dating violence is. </p>
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<img alt="Non-binary young person looking at a phone." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427345/original/file-20211019-25-kasylw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427345/original/file-20211019-25-kasylw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427345/original/file-20211019-25-kasylw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427345/original/file-20211019-25-kasylw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427345/original/file-20211019-25-kasylw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427345/original/file-20211019-25-kasylw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427345/original/file-20211019-25-kasylw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Dating violence disproportionately affects youth who are marginalized, including trans and non-binary youth, youth living in poverty and racialized youth.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Families are more likely to discuss issues that are actually less common than dating violence. For example, family communication about substance use is a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2001.00048.x">popular topic</a>, but alcohol and tobacco use affects fewer young people than dating violence. About <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/canadian-student-tobacco-alcohol-drugs-survey/2018-2019-summary.html">one in four</a> youth in Canada report that they drank heavily in the past year. <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/canadian-student-tobacco-alcohol-drugs-survey/2018-2019-summary.html">One in five</a> report e-cigarette use in the past 30 days. </p>
<p>To break down dating violence statistics, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2021.01.032">we conducted a study</a> with a national sample of over 3,000 Canadian youth. We found that, in the past year, 12 per cent were physically hurt on purpose by someone they were dating or going out with. Another 18 per cent had a dating partner use social media to hurt, embarrass or monitor them. And, 28 per cent reported that a dating partner had tried to control them or emotionally hurt them. </p>
<p>Other research from Québec also found that sexual dating violence is a common experience for Canadian youth. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-020-01328-5">In this study</a>, 20 per cent of female participants and seven per cent of male participants reported unwanted sexual activity in their current or most recent dating relationship. Stalking by an intimate partner also impacts a <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/180117/dq180117a-eng.htm">substantial minority</a> of young people. In Canada, approximately two out of every three stalking victims are women, and about half are between the ages of 15-34.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427346/original/file-20211019-20-11b6l30.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Young woman in casual clothes sitting on the ground leaning against a wall looking sad." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427346/original/file-20211019-20-11b6l30.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427346/original/file-20211019-20-11b6l30.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427346/original/file-20211019-20-11b6l30.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427346/original/file-20211019-20-11b6l30.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427346/original/file-20211019-20-11b6l30.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427346/original/file-20211019-20-11b6l30.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427346/original/file-20211019-20-11b6l30.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Youth who experience dating violence are significantly more likely to report mental health problems in the future. Early intervention is critical in preventing negative effects.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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<p>Like many public health problems, dating violence disproportionately affects <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2021.01.032">youth who are marginalized</a>, including trans and non-binary youth, youth living in poverty and racialized youth. </p>
<p>In terms of outcomes, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2012-1029">research conducted by our team</a> found that youth who experience dating violence are significantly more likely to report mental health problems in the future. Dating violence is also a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2016.09.015">strong risk factor</a> for domestic violence in adulthood. In the worst-case scenario, dating violence <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-811797-2.00008-6">can lead to homicide</a>. </p>
<h2>The role of policy in prevention</h2>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427347/original/file-20211019-19094-pq486y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Cropped image of young person sitting cross-legged on the ground looking at a phone, with head out of shot" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427347/original/file-20211019-19094-pq486y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427347/original/file-20211019-19094-pq486y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427347/original/file-20211019-19094-pq486y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427347/original/file-20211019-19094-pq486y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427347/original/file-20211019-19094-pq486y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427347/original/file-20211019-19094-pq486y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427347/original/file-20211019-19094-pq486y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Eighteen per cent of young people reported that a dating partner had used social media to hurt, embarrass or monitor them.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Early intervention is critical to preventing the negative impacts of dating violence. Yet, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1524838018770412">adolescents report</a> significant barriers to receiving support following dating violence. </p>
<p>One key barrier <a href="https://doi.org/10.1089/vio.2017.0043">is that educators</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/josh.12008">other significant adults</a> do not generally know their role in responding to dating violence. We believe this is related to limited knowledge about dating violence policy, which is very important in defining and guiding adults’ roles when responding.</p>
<p>The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic continues to show us the critical role policy plays when we are trying to solve public health problems. But, the role of policy in preventing dating violence has been very undervalued. </p>
<p>The policies that might apply to dating violence in each province and territory are not easily navigated. In fact, in our roles as the scientific co-directors of Canada’s <a href="https://www.prevnet.ca/">healthy relationships hub PREVNet</a>, one of the most common questions we are asked by educators is about how they should respond to dating violence. Caregivers and youth themselves also want to know what to do if someone in their life experiences dating violence.</p>
<h2>Dating violence policy map</h2>
<p>Our team at PREVNet created an interactive policy map (available in both <a href="https://youthdatingviolence.prevnet.ca/fr/en-savoir-plus/tout-le-monde/legislation/">French</a> and <a href="https://youthdatingviolence.prevnet.ca/learn-more/everyone/legislation">English</a>) that gives user-friendly guidance for educators and caregivers as well as young people on dating violence policy in each province and territory. For example, for educators, our map provides a helpful summary of the policies related to supporting youth in their area who experience dating violence.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427352/original/file-20211019-16-cuqt0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Map of Canada" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427352/original/file-20211019-16-cuqt0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/427352/original/file-20211019-16-cuqt0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427352/original/file-20211019-16-cuqt0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427352/original/file-20211019-16-cuqt0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427352/original/file-20211019-16-cuqt0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427352/original/file-20211019-16-cuqt0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/427352/original/file-20211019-16-cuqt0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The PREVNET interactive policy map gives user-friendly guidance for educators and caregivers as well as young people on dating violence policy in each province and territory.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Pixabay/Canva)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our map is an important first step in listing available policy protections for youth who experience dating violence in Canada. But, our work also highlights that while there are a lot of policies for children who experience abuse, and some for adults who experience domestic violence, there is almost no policy that is specific to youth experiencing dating violence. </p>
<p>For example, adolescents are generally not able to access <a href="https://nij.ojp.gov/library/publications/exploratory-study-juvenile-orders-protection-remedy-dating-violence">protection orders</a>. There also are no publicly funded supports (such as hotlines) dedicated to adolescents experiencing dating violence in Canada. Existing policy also does not make clear adults’ roles in supporting these youth. </p>
<p>This map highlights where we need to go to support youth experiencing dating violence. There is a clear need for the development of youth-centred policy at the federal and provincial levels that specifically addresses dating violence. This policy must clarify the roles and responsibilities of adults in responding to dating violence. It must also provide developmentally appropriate supports for youth. </p>
<p>Through the development and implementation of such policy, we can support youth’s rights and well-being.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/168725/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Deinera Exner-Cortens receives research funding from the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canada Research Chairs program. She is also the Scientific Co-Director of PREVNet. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Wendy Craig receives funding from Public Health Agency Canada. She is the Co-founder and Scientific Co- Director of PREVNet. </span></em></p>One in three Canadian youth experience dating violence. Early intervention is critical to preventing the negative effects, but adolescents report significant barriers to finding support.Deinera Exner-Cortens, Assistant Professor of Psychology and Tier II Canada Research Chair (Childhood Health Promotion), University of CalgaryWendy Craig, Professor of Psychology, Queen's University, OntarioLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1643202021-07-15T03:52:36Z2021-07-15T03:52:36ZVictoria considers electronic surveillance for alleged stalkers<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410988/original/file-20210713-21-r09vvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In 1993, Andrea Patrick was murdered by her ex-partner after a period of severe harassment and despite a restraining order being made against him. The public outcry that followed Patrick’s death impelled the New South Wales government to follow Queensland’s lead and <a href="https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/Hansard/Pages/HansardResult.aspx#/docid/HANSARD-1323879322-89176">enact an offence of stalking</a>. </p>
<p>During the 1990s, all Australian states and territories made stalking a distinct crime. Evidence of stalking can also form the basis of civil law orders known as restraining, apprehended violence or intervention orders.</p>
<p>However, there are concerns that little has changed since Andrea Patrick’s death. <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-12-09/celeste-manno-mother-calls-for-tougher-stalking-laws/12964622">There is a view</a> that stalking is not being treated seriously enough and intervention orders may be breached without serious ramifications for alleged offenders. </p>
<p>The Victorian attorney-general has asked the <a href="https://www.lawreform.vic.gov.au/projects/stalking/stalking-terms-reference">Victorian Law Reform Commission</a> to consider new measures for responding to stalking, including whether electronic monitoring could be a condition of intervention orders. </p>
<p>Before considering the advantages and disadvantages of such a measure, it is worth considering how stalking is defined.</p>
<h2>What is stalking?</h2>
<p>While definitions differ, in general, stalking refers to a pattern of behaviour intended to cause harm or arouse fear. Stalking can include: </p>
<ul>
<li><p><a href="https://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/pdf/10.1176/ajp.156.8.1244">surveillance</a>: obsessive monitoring through physically following or tracking the other person via technology or by loitering at the person’s home or workplace </p></li>
<li><p><a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/bsl.966">repetition</a>: there may be unwanted contact that occurs multiple times – it can happen over the course of one day, a few weeks, or many years</p></li>
<li><p>degradation: this may involve verbal abuse, posting denigrating comments or images online, or humiliating the other person in public</p></li>
<li><p><a href="https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007%2F978-1-4614-5690-2_535">intrusion</a>: this may include repeatedly approaching the other person, interfering with the person’s property, or entering the person’s home or workplace. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>Stalking can involve actions that would, in another context, be legal or even welcome. For example, gift-giving is usually legal. But if someone repeatedly gives another person unwanted gifts and will not stop when asked, this may amount to stalking. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/friendlyjordies-producer-arrest-what-is-the-nsw-police-fixated-persons-investigations-unit-and-when-is-it-used-162758">Friendlyjordies producer arrest: what is the NSW Police Fixated Persons Investigations Unit and when is it used?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Intervention orders</h2>
<p>Individuals can apply to a court for an intervention order that prohibits another person (the defendant) from behaving in a particular manner towards them. In addition to acting as a restraint on the defendant’s behaviour, an intervention order can direct the defendant to comply with certain conditions. </p>
<p>In Victoria, for example, there are two types of intervention orders: <a href="http://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/vic/consol_act/fvpa2008283/">family violence intervention orders</a> and <a href="http://www6.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdb/au/legis/vic/consol_act/psioa2010409/">personal safety intervention orders</a>. The first type covers situations between family members, including current or former intimate partners and some carers. The second type covers all other relationships.</p>
<p>Lower courts may grant intervention orders if there is sufficient evidence of stalking.</p>
<h2>Electronic monitoring</h2>
<p>Electronic monitoring generally refers to “<a href="http://www.antoniocasella.eu/nume/COE_electronic_16oct12.pdf">forms of surveillance with which to monitor the location, movement and specific behaviour of persons</a>”. It includes the use of devices such as ankle bracelets, which use radio frequency or Global Positioning System (GPS) technology to monitor the location of the person.</p>
<p>While the use of such devices is usually associated with monitoring offenders after conviction, pretrial electronic monitoring is used in some places as <a href="http://www6.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/wa/consol_act/ba198241/s50l.html">a condition of bail</a>. Electronic monitoring is also permitted in South Australia and Queensland for some <a href="https://www.ranzcp.org/news-policy/policy-and-advocacy/position-statements/electronic-monitoring-people-in-forensic-mh">individuals using forensic mental health services</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/411150/original/file-20210714-13-69trd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/411150/original/file-20210714-13-69trd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/411150/original/file-20210714-13-69trd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/411150/original/file-20210714-13-69trd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/411150/original/file-20210714-13-69trd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/411150/original/file-20210714-13-69trd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/411150/original/file-20210714-13-69trd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Electronic monitoring devices such as ankle bracelets have been used pre-trial in some cases.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It appears electronic monitoring has not been used in Australia as a condition of intervention orders. However, Matt Black and Russell G. Smith <a href="https://www.aic.gov.au/publications/tandi/tandi254">pointed out</a> in 2003 that “modern restriction and surveillance capabilities may raise the possibility for consideration”.</p>
<h2>Pros and cons of electronic monitoring</h2>
<p>Electronic monitoring may help to ensure intervention orders work to prevent alleged stalkers physically approaching particular people. It can ensure they don’t enter proscribed areas and be used to track their movements.</p>
<p>However, it can be expensive. The panel that reviewed post-sentence supervision of sex offenders in Victoria <a href="https://files.justice.vic.gov.au/2021-06/cavsom%20harper%20report.pdf?A_rtu8pRp1SsqKDZxF2dWoGkzLvLLcmg=">observed</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>[…] the costs associated with electronic monitoring were considerable, particularly in proportion to other important functions undertaken by Corrections Victoria. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Due to resource allocation, it is not feasible for every alleged stalker to be monitored 24 hours a day. Analysis of the electronic monitoring data is also not necessarily immediate. If electronic monitoring were an option in relation to intervention orders, it may also lead to more contested cases, thereby taking up more court time.</p>
<p>There are human rights issues in relation to curtailing the liberty of those who have not been convicted of a crime. Wearing an electronic device may also be sitgmatising. The balance here is whether public safety considerations outweigh individual rights.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/hunting-the-hunter-how-to-effectively-combat-stalking-22700">Hunting the hunter: how to effectively combat stalking</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>A shift in focus</h2>
<p>Being forced to modify behaviour to avoid being stalked appears to be common for victim survivors of stalking. They may experience significant lifestyle changes such as:</p>
<ul>
<li>avoiding places where their stalker might be</li>
<li>changing routines</li>
<li>quitting school or their job</li>
<li>moving house. </li>
</ul>
<p>A key question for the Victorian Law Reform Commission inquiry into stalking will be whether electronic monitoring can help shift the focus away from victims having to alter their own behaviour to forcing alleged offenders to alter theirs.</p>
<p>Electronic monitoring may have a role to play, but it may be that the disadvantages outweigh the benefits.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Submissions to the inquiry close on August 5 2021. <a href="https://lawreform.vic.gov.au/projects/stalking/stalking-consultation-paper">A consultation paper</a> to guide submissions can be found on the VLRC website, and an anonymous online form for people who have experienced stalking can be completed via the following <a href="https://engage.vic.gov.au/stalking-laws">link</a>. The Commission is due to provide an interim report to the Victorian government by December 31 2021 and a final report by June 30 2022.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/164320/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Emeritus Professor Bernadette McSherry is a Commissioner with the Victorian Law Reform Commission. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Madeleine Ulbrick is a Senior Research and Policy Officer at the Victorian Law Reform Commission</span></em></p>The question for the Victorian Law Reform Commission is whether such a move would curb the behaviour of the alleged offender rather than forcing victims to curb theirs.Bernadette McSherry, Emeritus Professor, The University of MelbourneMadeleine Ulbrick, Senior Research and Policy Officer, Monash UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1590252021-05-12T12:46:22Z2021-05-12T12:46:22ZDomestic violence isn’t about just physical violence – and state laws are beginning to recognize that<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398163/original/file-20210430-22-118bvll.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=14%2C0%2C4831%2C3401&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Intimate partner abuse isn't about just physical violence. It's about domination and control.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/illustration/woman-sitting-before-looming-male-shadow-royalty-free-illustration/1264127369?adppopup=true"> Malte Mueller/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Three or more U.S. women are murdered every day by their <a href="https://www.apa.org/topics/violence/partner">current or former intimate partner</a>. </p>
<p>That may in part be due to a failure of state laws to capture the full range of behavior that constitutes domestic abuse. The law continues to treat intimate partner violence like a bar fight – considering only what happened in a given incident and not all the prior abuse history, such as intimidation and entrapment. </p>
<p>Research shows, however, that domestic abuse is not about arguments, short tempers and violent tendencies. It’s about <a href="https://scholarship.law.vanderbilt.edu/vlr/vol71/iss2/7/">domination and control</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://scholarship.law.vanderbilt.edu/vlr/vol71/iss2/7/">Men who kill their female partners usually dominate them first</a> – sometimes without physical violence. Indeed, for 28% to 33% of victims, the homicide or attempted homicide was <a href="https://perma.cc/Q43N-UNFP">the first act of physical violence</a> in the relationship. </p>
<p>Most state laws intended to protect people from violent partners and ex-partners do not account for this kind of behavior, which violence experts now call “<a href="https://opdv.ny.gov/professionals/abusers/coercivecontrol.html">coercive control</a>.” Yet coercive control is nearly always at the core of what is usually called “domestic abuse” or “intimate partner violence.” </p>
<p>Some states are stepping up to incorporate coercive and controlling behavior, not just episodes of violence, into laws that protect victims. These laws make clear: Intimate partner abuse isn’t about just physical violence. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398183/original/file-20210430-18-7wyi73.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A sign on a wall that provides contact information to help victims of battering, rape and other physical abuse." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398183/original/file-20210430-18-7wyi73.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398183/original/file-20210430-18-7wyi73.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398183/original/file-20210430-18-7wyi73.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398183/original/file-20210430-18-7wyi73.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398183/original/file-20210430-18-7wyi73.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398183/original/file-20210430-18-7wyi73.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398183/original/file-20210430-18-7wyi73.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Domestic violence laws focus mostly on physical violence, but there’s more to domestic violence than physical abuse.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/miami-dont-suffer-in-silence-assistance-for-victims-of-news-photo/1177459950?adppopup=true">Jeff Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Behind the violence</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/invisible-chains/201509/is-your-partner-too-controlling">Typical coercive control tactics</a> include isolating, intimidating, stalking, micromanaging, sexual coercion and often – but not always – physical abuse. </p>
<p>Abusers inflict these tactics on their partners over time in a variety of ways, ultimately reducing the victim’s ability to live as a free person. Survivors often say that the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-11-19/coercive-control-domestic-abuse-australia-criminalise/11703442">physical violence was not the worst part</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://evanstark.weebly.com/about.html">Forensic social worker Evan Stark’s</a> landmark 2007 book, “<a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/coercive-control-9780195384048?cc=us&lang=en&">Coercive Control: How Men Entrap Women in Personal Life</a>,” set the stage for an outpouring of research and legislation on coercive control. Stark changed the conversation from “Why doesn’t she leave?” to “How can anyone survive this intimate torture?” and “How can society protect these victims?” </p>
<p>The concept has also entered popular culture through <a href="https://idopodcast.com/dr-lisa-fontes/">podcasts</a> and television shows such as “<a href="https://www.oxygen.com/dirty-john-the-dirty-truth/crime-news/dirty-johns-debra-newell-talks-coercive-control-protection">Dirty John</a>.”</p>
<p>I wrote the second book on coercive control, “<a href="https://www.guilford.com/books/Invisible-Chains/Lisa-Aronson-Fontes/9781462520244">Invisible Chains: Overcoming Coercive Control in Your Intimate Relationship</a>.” I serve as an expert witness in legal cases in which coercive control might be present, and I research related topics.</p>
<p>Advocates for victims of domestic abuse say that new state legislation on coercive control <a href="https://bklyner.com/opinion-domestic-violence-laws-must-address-coercive-control/">could substantially change the way domestic abuse is handled</a> by police and the courts. New laws would lead to more prosecutions before the control evolves into physical violence, or even homicide, they say.</p>
<p>And addressing coercive control is important not simply because it will reduce intimate partner homicides; one person should not be able to deny another basic freedom simply because they are married or in a relationship.</p>
<p>Helena Phillibert, director of legal services at the Rockland County New York Center for Safety, said in an interview I conducted: “Legislation against coercive control is critical to broadening the range of abusive behaviors recognized in the law. The advantages to victims and survivors are numerous but most significantly, legislation that recognizes coercive control necessarily expands the understanding of domestic violence beyond physical abuse.” </p>
<p>Since we know <a href="https://theconversation.com/most-mass-killers-are-men-who-have-also-attacked-family-87230">most mass killers are men who have also attacked family members</a>, earlier intervention in domestic abuse may also reduce mass killings, making everyone safer.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/399834/original/file-20210510-5613-i9q5uv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman looking up wearing a blue mask with the word 'VOTE' on it." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/399834/original/file-20210510-5613-i9q5uv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/399834/original/file-20210510-5613-i9q5uv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/399834/original/file-20210510-5613-i9q5uv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/399834/original/file-20210510-5613-i9q5uv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/399834/original/file-20210510-5613-i9q5uv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/399834/original/file-20210510-5613-i9q5uv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/399834/original/file-20210510-5613-i9q5uv.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Connecticut state Sen. Alex Kasser has introduced a bill to update how state law defines domestic violence to include coercive control.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/ConnecticutLegislature/5f88a8151ed3453f8e57b062ad0fc523/photo?Query=Alex%20AND%20Kasser&mediaType=photo&sortBy=creationdatetime:desc&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=1&currentItemNo=0">AP Photo/Jessica Hill</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>States taking lead</h2>
<p>In the past half-dozen years, <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/coercive-control-31706">new laws in the U.K. and elsewhere in Europe</a> have established “coercive and controlling behavior” as a distinct and serious criminal offense, with maximum sentences extending from five years in prison in England to 15 years in Scotland.</p>
<p>In the U.S., about a <a href="https://www.womenslaw.org/">half-dozen states</a> now incorporate elements of coercive control into their civil and criminal orders of protection. These are court-issued orders that require a person to stop harassing or abusing someone else, and may bar all contact. </p>
<p>Another <a href="https://www.womenslaw.org/">half-dozen new legislative proposals</a> aim to establish and flag coercive control as an important factor in family court decisions on divorce, child custody and visitation.</p>
<p><a href="https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200SB1141">California law SB-1141</a>, which was passed in 2020, defines coercive control as a pattern of domestic violence that “unreasonably interferes with a person’s free will and personal liberty.” </p>
<p>The law also recommends against awarding child custody to a person who has perpetrated domestic violence, unless the abuser can prove that he or she is not a risk to a child. </p>
<p>State Sen. Alex Kasser based Connecticut’s <a href="https://www.cga.ct.gov/2021/TOB/S/PDF/2021SB-01091-R00-SB.PDF">Bill 1091</a> on California’s but added additional examples of common coercive control tactics. </p>
<p>Her bill includes “forced sex, sexual threats and threats to release sexualized images” as well as a section on <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/vexatious_litigation">vexatious litigation</a>, which Kasser defines as “how abusers use the legal system to harass their victims, dragging them to court repeatedly to drain their resources and make them lose their jobs, homes, savings and sometimes their children.”</p>
<p>Kasser emphasizes that the Connecticut bill also protects the children of an abused parent. The bill establishes the physical and emotional safety of the child as the first of 17 factors to be considered in custody decisions. It was <a href="https://greenwichfreepress.com/news/government/lamont-signs-jennifers-law-expanding-ct-definition-of-domestic-violence-162224/">signed into law by Gov. Ned Lamont on June 28, 2021</a>.</p>
<p>The New York State Senate’s proposed <a href="https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2021/S5650">Bill 5650</a> would establish coercive control as a Class E felony, meaning that a person convicted of coercive control could serve up to four years in jail for the crime. This is more in line with the laws in the U.K. and some other European countries. </p>
<p>While it is still too early to know whether coercive-control laws will predominate in U.S. civil or criminal law, it seems pretty clear that times are changing. I believe victims of coercive-control partner abuse will soon have access to legal protections in many more states across the country. </p>
<p>_This story has been updated to reflect passage of the Connecticut law.
_</p>
<p>[<em>Understand key political developments, each week.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/politics-weekly-74/?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=politics-understand">Subscribe to The Conversation’s politics newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/159025/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lisa Aronson Fontes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The law continues to treat intimate partner violence like a bar fight – considering only what happened in a given violent incident. But domestic violence isn’t about just physical violence.Lisa Aronson Fontes, Senior Lecturer, Interdisciplinary Studies, UMass AmherstLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1441072020-08-13T19:26:43Z2020-08-13T19:26:43ZAlmost half of US teens who date experience stalking and harassment<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352018/original/file-20200810-16-uknkb8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=16%2C0%2C2184%2C1355&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Social media makes dating-related harassment and stalking that much easier.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/illustration/mobile-phone-users-royalty-free-illustration/928088582?adppopup=true&uiloc=thumbnail_similar_images_adp">smartboy10/DigitalVision Vectors via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352574/original/file-20200812-24-7c4bxj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352574/original/file-20200812-24-7c4bxj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352574/original/file-20200812-24-7c4bxj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352574/original/file-20200812-24-7c4bxj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352574/original/file-20200812-24-7c4bxj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352574/original/file-20200812-24-7c4bxj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352574/original/file-20200812-24-7c4bxj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="attribution"><a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
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<p>Falling in love for the first time can be a thrill, and teen dating is important to adolescent development. But according to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X20921631">the results of a study</a> that my research team recently conducted, these early forays into romance often veer into unhealthy territory. </p>
<p>As many as 48% of 12- to 18-year-olds who describe themselves as having had a dating partner in the past year have also experienced dating-related stalking and harassment. </p>
<p>Not only can dating-related stalking and harassment <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2016.08.035">cause anxiety and depression</a> in teens, but it can also be a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1891/0886-6708.vv-d-16-00193">harbinger</a> for more serious forms of abuse should the relationship continue.</p>
<p>Our study collected self-reported survey data from 320 adolescents from across the U.S. through the <a href="https://www.norc.org/Research/Projects/Pages/survey-on-teen-realtionships-and-intimate-violence.aspx">Survey on Teen Relationships and Intimate Violence</a>. Youths with dating experience were asked whether a dating partner had ever spied on or followed them, damaged something that belonged to them or gone through their online accounts. Nearly half – 48% – said that they had experienced one or more of these behaviors, while 43% said that they had done these things to someone who they were dating. </p>
<p>Disturbingly, these statistics suggest that surveilling or acting aggressively toward a crush or partner isn’t just common among U.S. teenagers. They may also think it’s normal or acceptable. </p>
<p>Due to inexperience, <a href="http://www.pages02.net/hcscnosuppression/lifetimes_1113_health_and_wellness_bsbw_teen_dating_all_SHARED/?spMailingID=5843001&spUserID=MzI2Njk0Nzk4MjES1&spJobID=345550095&spReportId=MzQ1NTUwMDk1S0">adolescents may not recognize when they’re being treated poorly</a>. And, because they’re still developing, they may not know how to handle a situation in which someone’s attention is overwhelming or scaring them. It can be difficult for young people to know what constitutes healthy and unhealthy romantic pursuit, as well. Meanwhile, their media and social media diets don’t necessarily feature ideal relationship role models.</p>
<p>[<em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=experts">Expertise in your inbox. Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter and get expert takes on today’s news, every day.</a></em>]</p>
<p>It’s important for teenagers to hear from adults that it isn’t normal to constantly want to know what their partner is up to and that monitoring their social media posts or going into their private accounts is invasive – before, during and after a relationship. </p>
<p>I find that parents tend to have one of two extreme reactions to the idea of their teens dating for the first time. There’s the “over my dead body” reaction, which usually means they forbid their children from dating altogether. Or there’s the “aw, puppy love is so cute” response, in which they don’t dig too deeply into the contours of the relationship.</p>
<p>A third option is for parents to appreciate the ways in which dating is normal and helpful for the development of social skills; for example, dating can give teens practice ending relationships, which can <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/adolescent-development/healthy-relationships/dating/index.html">give them the confidence</a> to get into and out of intimate partnerships in adulthood. At the same time, there’s a role for parents: Pay attention to what’s going on, and be there to guide them if there are signs that a relationship is becoming unhealthy. </p>
<p><em>Eva Bahrami, Nnenna Okeke and Elizabeth Mumford of the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago contributed to this research.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/144107/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The author received financial support from the National Institute of Justice Grant # 2016-VF-GX-0007.</span></em></p>Many also openly admit to spying on or stalking their partners, suggesting that they may not know that there’s anything wrong with the behaviors.Emily Rothman, Professor of Community Health Sciences, Boston UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1392172020-05-29T03:40:08Z2020-05-29T03:40:08ZThere is no specific crime of catfishing. But is it illegal?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/338125/original/file-20200528-143715-18ybz85.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C205%2C3928%2C2305&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Twenty-year-old Sydney woman Renae Marsden died by suicide after she was the victim of an elaborate catfishing scam.</p>
<p>A recent <a href="http://www.coroners.justice.nsw.gov.au/Documents/Marsden%20findings%2020%20May%2020.pdf">coronial investigation</a> into her 2013 death found no offence had been committed by the perpetrator, revealing the difficulties of dealing with this new and emerging phenomenon.</p>
<p>While we wait for law reform in this area, we think police and prosecutors could make better use of our existing laws to deal with these sorts of behaviours.</p>
<h2>What is catfishing?</h2>
<p>“Catfishing” occurs when a person creates a fake profile on social media in order to deceive someone else and abuse them, take their money or otherwise
manipulate and control them. </p>
<p>While statistics about the prevalence of catfishing are elusive, popular dating sites <a href="https://www.eharmony.co.uk/dating-advice/dating/how-to-spot-a-catfish">such as eHarmony</a> and the Australian government’s <a href="https://www.esafety.gov.au/young-people/catfishing">eSafety Commission</a> offer advice about spotting catfishers. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/from-catfish-to-romance-fraud-how-to-avoid-getting-caught-in-any-online-scam-115227">From catfish to romance fraud, how to avoid getting caught in any online scam</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Catfishing is also the subject of an <a href="http://www.mtv.com.au/catfish-the-tv-show">MTV reality series</a>, major Hollywood <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7668870/">films</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-not-about-money-we-asked-catfish-why-they-trick-people-online-100381">psychological research</a> on why people do it.</p>
<h2>Dangerous, damaging but not a specific crime</h2>
<p>There is no specific crime of catfishing in Australia. But there are many different behaviours involved in catfishing, which can come under various existing offences. </p>
<p>One of these is financial fraud. In 2018, a Canberra woman pleaded guilty to <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/act/ACTSC/2018/285.html">10 fraud offences</a> after she created an elaborate and false online profile on a dating website. She befriended at least ten men online, then lied to them about having cancer and other illnesses and asked them to help her pay for treatment. She obtained more than $300,000. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/338126/original/file-20200528-143682-18oykbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/338126/original/file-20200528-143682-18oykbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=376&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338126/original/file-20200528-143682-18oykbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=376&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338126/original/file-20200528-143682-18oykbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=376&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338126/original/file-20200528-143682-18oykbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=473&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338126/original/file-20200528-143682-18oykbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=473&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338126/original/file-20200528-143682-18oykbs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=473&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Catfishers create fake online profiles to deceive others.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">www.shutterstock.com</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Another crime associated with catfishing is stalking. In 2019, a Victorian woman was <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-06-06/lincoln-lewis-catfish-lydia-abdelmalek-sentenced/11184174">convicted of stalking</a> and sentenced to two years and eight months jail after she created a Facebook page where she pretended to be Australian actor Lincoln Lewis. This case is currently <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-28/lincoln-lewis-catfish-lydia-abdelmalek-directions-hearing/12009492">subject to an appeal</a>.</p>
<h2>The grey area of psychological and emotional abuse</h2>
<p>When catfishing doesn’t involve fraud or threats, but involves psychological and emotional manipulation, it can be more difficult to obtain convictions. </p>
<p>One of the most notorious cases occurred more than a decade ago in the United States. Missouri mother <a href="https://casetext.com/case/us-v-drew-12">Lori Drew</a> catfished a teenager she believed had been unkind to her daughter. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/have-you-caught-a-catfish-online-dating-can-be-deceptive-109702">Have you caught a catfish? Online dating can be deceptive</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>With the help of her <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/nov/26/myspace-suicide-cyber-bully">daughter and young employee</a>, Drew created a fake MySpace profile as a teenage boy and contacted the 13-year-old victim. Online flirting took place until the relationship was abruptly ended. The victim was told that “the world would be a better place without her”. Later that day, she killed herself. </p>
<p>Because the harm suffered by the victim was not physical but psychological, and had been perpetrated online, prosecutors had trouble identifying an appropriate criminal charge. </p>
<p>Eventually, Drew was charged with computer fraud and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/27/us/27myspace.html">found guilty</a>. But the <a href="https://www.wired.com/2009/07/drew-court/">conviction was overturned</a> in 2009 when an appeal court concluded the legislation was never meant to capture this type of behaviour.</p>
<h2>Renae Marsden’s case</h2>
<p>The harm done to Marsden was also psychological and emotional. She was deliberately deceived and psychologically manipulated through the creation of a fake online identity by one of her oldest female friends.</p>
<p>Marsden thought she had met a man online who would become her husband. For almost two years, they exchanged thousands of text and Facebook messages. Marsden ended an engagement to another man so that she could be with the man she met online. They planned their wedding. </p>
<p>When he abruptly ended the relationship, Marsden ended her life.</p>
<p>The coroner described the conduct of Marsden’s catfisher as “appalling” and an “extreme betrayal”, but found that no offence had been committed. She <a href="http://www.coroners.justice.nsw.gov.au/Documents/Marsden%20findings%2020%20May%2020.pdf">observed</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Where ‘catfishing’ is without threat or intimidation or is not for monetary gain, then the conduct appears to be committed with the intent to coerce and control someone for the purpose of a wish fulfilment or some other gratification. Though such conduct may cause the recipient mental and or physical harm because it is not conduct committed with the necessary intent it falls outside the parameters of a known State criminal offence.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Existing laws like manslaughter could apply</h2>
<p>We disagree with the coroner’s conclusion. We think that existing state criminal offences might capture some of this behaviour.</p>
<p>In particular, deliberately deceptive and psychologically manipulative online conduct, resulting in the death of a victim by suicide, could potentially make a perpetrator liable for manslaughter. </p>
<p>This is because a perpetrator who commits the offence of <a href="https://www.legislation.nsw.gov.au/#/view/act/1900/40/part3/div6/sec35">recklessly causing grievous bodily harm</a> (which may include <a href="http://eresources.hcourt.gov.au/showCase/2017/HCA/18">psychological harm</a>), in circumstances where a reasonable person would realise this exposed the victim to an appreciable <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/cth/HCA/1992/31.ht">risk of serious injury</a>, could be liable for the crime of “<a href="https://www.judcom.nsw.gov.au/publications/benchbks/criminal/manslaughter.html#p5-980">manslaughter</a> by unlawful and dangerous act”.</p>
<p>Such prosecutions can and should be contemplated as an appropriate response to the serious wrongdoing that has occurred.</p>
<h2>Where to from here?</h2>
<p>Marsden’s <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/parents-of-catfishing-victim-want-laws-changed-and-named-after-renae-20200520-p54uo2.html">parents are pushing</a> for catfishing to be made illegal. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/338127/original/file-20200528-143732-o94gwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/338127/original/file-20200528-143732-o94gwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338127/original/file-20200528-143732-o94gwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338127/original/file-20200528-143732-o94gwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338127/original/file-20200528-143732-o94gwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338127/original/file-20200528-143732-o94gwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/338127/original/file-20200528-143732-o94gwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Teresa and Mark Marsden want catfishing to be made illegal.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Dean Lewis/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The coroner chose not to recommend a specific offence of catfishing, noting: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>there are complex matters which were not canvassed at the inquest which need to be taken into account before any coronial recommendation involving the introduction of criminal legislation.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>But the report did recommend a closer look at making “<a href="https://theconversation.com/its-time-coercive-control-was-made-illegal-in-australia-114817">coercive control</a>” an offence. </p>
<p>Coercive control involves a wide range of controlling behaviours and could potentially criminalise the sort of psychologically and emotionally abusive conduct Marsden experienced. </p>
<p>It is also on the political agenda. In March, New South Wales Attorney-General Mark Speakman announced he would consult on <a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/state-seeks-law-to-ban-coercive-domestic-abuse/news-story/8e7f2519ebad5833d1a54393fa7a458b">possible new “coercive control” laws</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/its-time-coercive-control-was-made-illegal-in-australia-114817">It's time 'coercive control' was made illegal in Australia</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>We note, however, that the coercive control discussion is happening in the context of domestic violence. Whether prospective new laws can or should extend to catfishing will require careful consideration and drafting.</p>
<p>While we wait for a new offence, we should also ensure that we make use of the laws we already have to protect people from the devastating damage that can be done by catfishing.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/139217/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>There is no specific crime of catfishing in Australia. So we have to make better use of existing laws to address this devastating behaviour.Marilyn McMahon, Deputy Dean, School of Law, Deakin UniversityDr Paul McGorrery, PhD Candidate in Criminal Law, Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1353542020-04-03T13:32:00Z2020-04-03T13:32:00ZThese radical artworks force you to look in new ways<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324583/original/file-20200401-66109-hsk64e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5318%2C4000&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">FKS</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://0100101110101101.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/FKS0125.jpg">Eva and Franco Mattes</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Time in isolation doesn’t have to mean time alone. Delving into art books, researching art online and even making art can reaffirm human connections and <a href="https://ahrc.ukri.org/documents/publications/cultural-value-project-final-report/">increase empathy</a>. And there are online art exhibitions and art platforms for us to visit, discuss, reflect on and contribute to. We may be living in unprecedented times, but art can shine some light on the uncertain pathway ahead. </p>
<p>Art is always “unprecedented”. It offers new perspectives that are often ambiguous and sometimes uncomfortable. Art doesn’t necessarily solve things, but it makes us question and rethink our worldview. It opens up a space for thought and encourages us to respond with creativity and openness. Importantly, this reflective space is shared with others. We ask these questions alongside each other, and we are not alone in our experiences of loss, frustration and uncertainty. Art has the ability to connect us whether it operates at a distance or up close.</p>
<h2>Contagious images</h2>
<p>Sometimes artists take risks, endangering their health in order to create or sustain this reflective space.</p>
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<p>In 2011, in the months following the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown in Fukushima, Japan, art collective <a href="http://chimpom.jp/project/dfw.html">Chim↑Pom</a> initiated a project called Don’t Follow the Wind, an exhibition of works by 12 artists within the Fukushima Exclusion Zone. </p>
<p>The exhibition itself cannot be viewed. The Fukushima Exclusion Zone was evacuated after the disaster due to the high radiation levels. By installing Don’t Follow the Wind in this contaminated zone, the artists have made sure that documentation of this unseeable exhibition sustains critical attention to a complex, and continually-unfolding humanitarian crisis. As the Japanese Government are still facing accusations of covering up the extent of the damage, documentation of Don’t Follow the Wind can be seen in cities all around the world from Sydney to Sweden, reminding us of the impact of the disaster. </p>
<p>One featured project, <a href="http://0100101110101101.org/fukushima-texture-pack/">Fukushima Texture Pack</a> by Franco and Eva Mattes, documented the textures of the irradiated surfaces. These photographic images can be downloaded for free as seamless digital prints and used by other creatives, such as video game designers. Here, the radiated surfaces proliferate through the cultural industries, perhaps undetected. A contagious image of a quarantined surface.</p>
<h2>Bleeding for art</h2>
<p>Artists sometimes spark fear through provocative attempts to open up a space for thinking and rethinking. </p>
<p>In 1994, in response to a different crisis – Aids – the American artist Ron Athey created a performance in which he cut patterns into the skin of another performer, Divinity P. Fudge (Darryl Carlton). The cuts were performed as rituals representing reflections on Aids and homophobia. Athey blotted Carlton’s bleeding body with towels before hanging them on a clothes line. The audience was standing beneath this clothes line. </p>
<p>This performance – <a href="http://hidvl.nyu.edu/video/w6m909kc.html">Four Scenes From a Harsh Life</a> – generated so much fear of contamination from HIV positive blood (although Carlton was HIV-negative) that <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/07/arts/for-endowment-one-performer-means-trouble.html">restrictions</a> were placed on funding from the National Endowment for the Arts. In the short term, the artwork was censored, but discussions on homophobia and body image haven’t gone away. Four Scenes From a Harsh Life confronted these issues head on and has become a cultural event of enduring significance.</p>
<h2>Consensual and non-consensual closeness</h2>
<p>Although these artists perhaps get “too close” through their art, other artists perform social distancing in a way that reinforces human connection. </p>
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<p>In 2010, artist Marina Abramović undertook a performance using her body as her artistic media. In The Artist is Present, Abramović spent eight hours a day, for three months, looking into the eyes of 1,000 individuals who took turns to sit six feet away from her. Participants queued for hours to sit opposite Abramović and hold her gaze, and often individuals were moved to tears during the performance. Here social distance is offset by the intimacy of this eye contact, the attention of another and the need for connection.</p>
<p>A less consensual connection took place in the French writer and artist Sophie Calle’s <a href="https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/calle-venetian-suite-t13640">Suite Venitienne</a>, published in 1979. Earlier that year Calle had met a man, Henri B, at a party. He was about to travel to Venice. Calle decided to follow him at a distance, wearing a blonde wig. She contacted his neighbour, and began to document his daily life through a nearby window and by tracking his movements throughout the city. Fascinated by the very fact that she could follow him, Calle documents her own emotional journey as a stalker, coolly evaluating her feelings of love and desire for connection. </p>
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<p>Suite Venitienne contains her documentary photography right up to a final confrontation with Henri, in which he blocks the camera with his hand. In much of her work, Calle’s time spent alone and isolated is the starting point of a new journey. Responding to her own sense of introversion, she creates critical distance from her thoughts, exposing them to curious and often empathetic audiences.</p>
<p>Art, sometimes too close for comfort and other times at an unreachable distance, nevertheless reaffirms a human connection. We may be in a long-distance relationship with art, for a short while at least, but it’s all the more important to stay connected and to keep art in our lives for its warmth, humanity and unexpected insights. </p>
<h2>Please hold while we try to connect you</h2>
<ul>
<li><p><strong><a href="https://artsandculture.google.com/project/frida-kahlo">Faces of Frida</a></strong> – An intimate portrayal of Frida Kahlo through her life along with her art and cultural legacy.</p></li>
<li><p><strong><a href="https://nightwatchexperience.com/en/">Experience Rembrandt’s Nightwatch</a></strong> – Find out what makes the Nightwatch such a unique painting.</p></li>
<li><p><strong><a href="https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/exhibition/bmw-tate-live-exhibition-2020">My Body, My Archive</a></strong> – Congolese choreographer and dancer Faustin Linyekula re-invents a scheduled performance at the Tate Modern that had been cancelled following closure of the gallery.</p></li>
<li><p><strong><a href="https://sounds.bl.uk/Arts-literature-and-performance/ICA-talks?dm_i=56G9,6H96,125RTG,ODPQ,1">ICA talks</a></strong> – An archive of discussion events and talks held at the ICA between 1982-1993.</p></li>
</ul><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135354/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jessica Holtaway does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>From Fukushima to a stalkers visual diary, art can be confrontational whether it’s far away or uncomfortably closeJessica Holtaway, Lecturer in Visual Communication, Solent UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1322402020-03-03T12:06:55Z2020-03-03T12:06:55ZEven after blocking an ex on Facebook, the platform promotes painful reminders<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/318112/original/file-20200302-18283-1hh7ycg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=20%2C20%2C3306%2C2622&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Even if all the necessary precautions are taken, reminders of your ex can still crop up and catch your eye.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-vector/halftone-male-eye-circle-vector-illustration-576508015">jumpingsack/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287050/original/file-20190806-84240-i26yzq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287050/original/file-20190806-84240-i26yzq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=171&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287050/original/file-20190806-84240-i26yzq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=171&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287050/original/file-20190806-84240-i26yzq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=171&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287050/original/file-20190806-84240-i26yzq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=215&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287050/original/file-20190806-84240-i26yzq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=215&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287050/original/file-20190806-84240-i26yzq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=215&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><em>The Abstract features interesting research and the people behind it.</em></p>
<hr>
<p><a href="http://www.anthonypinter.com/">Anthony Pinter</a>, a Ph.D. student in information science at the University of Colorado Boulder, recently completed <a href="https://dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1145/3359172">a study</a> on people’s experiences with upsetting and unexpected reminders of an ex on Facebook.</p>
<p>His team’s findings are examples of <a href="https://medium.com/@PQPP3/facebook-grief-and-algorithmic-cruelty-24d1dd2a0540">algorithmic cruelty</a> – instances in which algorithms are designed to do something and do it well, but end up backfiring because they can’t fully grasp the nuances of human relationships and behavior. </p>
<p><strong>How has social media made breakups more difficult?</strong></p>
<p><strong>Anthony Pinter:</strong> Breaking up with a loved one has always meant making difficult choices: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VjgnvqLCq0">who gets the couch, who gets the fridge, who gets the cat</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/318168/original/file-20200302-18262-kc1tcz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/318168/original/file-20200302-18262-kc1tcz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=694&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/318168/original/file-20200302-18262-kc1tcz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=694&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/318168/original/file-20200302-18262-kc1tcz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=694&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/318168/original/file-20200302-18262-kc1tcz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=872&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/318168/original/file-20200302-18262-kc1tcz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=872&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/318168/original/file-20200302-18262-kc1tcz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=872&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Anthony Pinter.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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<p>But before social media, once the messy details were sorted, it wasn’t too difficult to create the physical, mental and emotional space that research has shown <a href="https://doi.org/10.1521/jscp.1993.12.4.367">to help with the healing process</a>. In the past, you could simply stop going to your ex’s favorite coffee shop. You could box up photos and put them in storage.</p>
<p>Social media has complicated things. Platforms like Facebook are designed to encourage connecting with your network and reminiscing about the past. It recommends <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2011/12/22/facebook-suggested-events/">upcoming events</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jun/29/how-does-facebook-suggest-potential-friends-not-location-data-not-now">suggests people to add as friends</a>, <a href="https://www.marketplace.org/2019/04/26/facebook-memories-lose-their-luster-wired-column/">resurfaces old memories and photos</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/help/132021603539177?helpref=related">highlights what your friends are doing</a>. </p>
<p>But after a breakup, you probably don’t want to be alerted about a new friend your ex has made on your news feed. Nor do you want to see an old photo with your ex reappear as a “Memory.” And with access to your ex’s online life just a search and a click away, it’s easy to succumb to forms of “<a href="https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/cyber.2010.0588?casa_token=fPaNZtyMkQsAAAAA%3AwxktZ_3YUR2yq3rPxSQQg99AVaXOogFlZyKAc-cge54mtpU2lFVscDldTZqI7GW6rAQYj-wYtrXhRw&journalCode=cyber">Facebook stalking</a>,” in which you periodically check in on their profile to see what they’re up to and whom they’re hanging out with. </p>
<p>Not surprisingly, Facebook has been shown to <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2322611/Facebook-makes-harder-breakup-study-finds-bring-delete-digital-memories.html">prolong the healing process</a> of a breakup. Conversely, you might also start to realize your ex has already moved on, which can be just as painful.</p>
<p><strong>“Just block your ex,” you’ll hear people say. Why isn’t this enough?</strong></p>
<p><strong>Pinter</strong>: First, blocking or unfriending isn’t as simple as it sounds. It can be done in as little as three clicks. But once you’ve done it, it’s hard to walk back from; if you ever decide to unblock someone or refriend them, social media platforms will often alert the ex that you’ve done so – which can send ambiguous signals and expectations.</p>
<p>But yes, platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have features meant to prevent these unwanted encounters – unfollow, unfriend or block. A few years ago, Facebook even developed a feature called <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/amitchowdhry/2015/11/25/facebook-take-a-break-feature/#29eb46bee50e">Take A Break</a>, which effectively mutes someone for a set period of time. </p>
<p>However, people are still seeing reminders of their exes on social media – even when they’ve actively taken advantage of features that supposedly prevent these encounters. </p>
<p>My colleagues and I conducted in-depth interviews with 19 people who had had an <a href="https://dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1145/3359172">unexpected and upsetting reminder of an ex on Facebook</a>.</p>
<p>One participant mentioned that the mother of an ex’s new partner was suggested as a possible friend. Another saw their ex commenting on a mutual friend’s post. In one case, an old photo that Facebook resurfaced via the Memories feature – from a beach vacation the two had taken when they’d been a couple – didn’t even include an image of the interviewee’s ex. But being prompted to think about that vacation was upsetting enough.</p>
<p><strong>What’s really going on here?</strong> </p>
<p><strong>Pinter:</strong> This is happening because the algorithms still don’t fully understand humans.</p>
<p>While you can tell Facebook you don’t want to see your ex anymore, the algorithm doesn’t realize that this might also include peripheral reminders of your ex, like a photo of his or her best friend, or a comment he or she has made on a mutual friend’s wall.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.wired.com/insights/2013/04/with-big-data-context-is-a-big-issue/">Context matters</a>, but algorithms often don’t have the ability to understand it. Even though that photo from the beach might not have anyone in it, it’s loaded with memories that you’d rather not think about.</p>
<p>In our work, we want to bring attention to what we call the “social periphery” – the satellites of a relationship, romantic or otherwise. Systems like Facebook are built to cultivate community, but the algorithms that undergird the system often rely on simplistic representations of people’s experiences like “relationship status” or “blocked.” Features meant to prevent upsetting encounters in the wake of a breakup or other fraught events similarly rely on these simplistic settings, ignoring the realities of a social periphery. </p>
<p>To the algorithm, the suggestion of the ex’s new partner’s mother is a perfectly reasonable suggestion – you probably share mutual friends that alert some sort of internal metric. But a human would know better than to make that suggestion.</p>
<p><strong>Why do these findings matter?</strong></p>
<p><strong>Pinter:</strong> Algorithms are becoming more <a href="https://www.wired.co.uk/article/internet-of-things-what-is-explained-iot">integrated into our everyday lives</a>, and social media isn’t the only place where we’re seeing these undesirable outcomes occur. For example, as people begin to rely more heavily on voice assistants like Siri or Alexa to send texts, we inevitably run into situations in which the programs mishear us and, for example, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2017/apr/28/i-sent-a-compromising-message-to-the-wrong-person-how-will-i-ever-recover">send a wildly inappropriate message to a boss or parent.</a></p>
<p>Our findings present a challenge for designers and developers: How can we create algorithms that are better attuned to the deep, lived experiences of the humans who will use these systems? It’s unlikely that there is a one-size-fits-all solution to this problem. On Facebook, features like Take a Break or blocking can be seen as important steps. But it’s clear that there’s a lot more work to do.</p>
<p>[<em>Get the best of The Conversation, every weekend.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/weekly-highlights-61?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=weeklybest">Sign up for our weekly newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/132240/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Anthony Pinter does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Facebook’s algorithms are designed to encourage reminiscence and reconnection. But in the wake of a breakup, we don’t always want those things.Anthony Pinter, Ph.D. Student in Information Science, University of Colorado BoulderLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1037342018-10-17T10:28:33Z2018-10-17T10:28:33ZThe Violence Against Women Act is unlikely to reduce intimate partner violence – here’s why<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/240836/original/file-20181016-165888-6hspai.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Most dollars spent on fighting domestic violence go to the criminal justice system.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/1082126789?src=KfR_IF-BIjLI0w6I4-tRIQ-1-34&size=huge_jpg">Shutterstock/Fure</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Violence-Against-Women-Act">Violence Against Women Act</a>, the federal government’s signature legislation aimed at responding to domestic violence, rape, sexual assault and stalking, expired at the end of September. </p>
<p>Legislative wrangling over the act’s provisions led to the expiration. This was not the first time controversy has gotten in the way of extending the legislation. Originally passed with strong bipartisan support in 1994, a <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/02/why-would-anyone-oppose-the-violence-against-women-act/273103/">previous reauthorization ran into problems</a> as a result of disputes involving protection for Native Americans, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender victims of violence, and undocumented women. </p>
<p>Although <a href="https://www.rollcall.com/news/politics/pelosi-short-term-vawa-extension-abdication-of-our-responsibilities-to-women">Congress has temporarily reauthorized the act</a>, its future is again uncertain, and <a href="https://sanctuaryforfamilies.org/our-approach/advocacy/protect-vawa/">advocates warn of the dire consequences</a> of failing to pass the law. </p>
<p>But the fact is that the criminal system supported by the act isn’t stopping intimate partner violence. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/240838/original/file-20181016-165903-1629n41.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/240838/original/file-20181016-165903-1629n41.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/240838/original/file-20181016-165903-1629n41.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/240838/original/file-20181016-165903-1629n41.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/240838/original/file-20181016-165903-1629n41.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/240838/original/file-20181016-165903-1629n41.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/240838/original/file-20181016-165903-1629n41.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/240838/original/file-20181016-165903-1629n41.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Susan Contreras, in a Phoenix battered women’s shelter, was repeatedly beaten by her partner. Doctors say her headaches, memory loss and bouts of confused thinking may be the result of domestic violence.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Brain-Injuries-Domestic-Violence/fc6cf5774ba845548fcf578e2865af55/18/0">AP/Beatriz Costa-Lima</a></span>
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<h2>Criminal system focus</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss6308a1.htm?s_cid=ss6308a1_e">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a> estimates that 19 percent of women in America will be raped, 15 percent will be stalked, and 22 percent will experience domestic violence in their lifetimes. </p>
<p>The Violence Against Women Act was the first law dedicated to ending that brutality. With a total <a href="https://www.justice.gov/tribal/violence-against-women-act-vawa-reauthorization-2013-0">authorization of US$3.1 billion in 2013</a>, the act supports rape crisis centers, pays for lawyers for victims of violence and provides money for transitional housing. But the single greatest beneficiary of the act is the criminal legal system.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.justice.gov/ovw/grant-programs">The act’s two largest grant programs</a> sent approximately $250 million to the courts, police and prosecutors last year. The money was used to train law enforcement and judges, develop policies for improved handling of domestic violence cases, encourage collaboration between community service providers and law enforcement, and staff law enforcement agencies with victim liaisons.</p>
<p>Without such incentives, <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/ct-life-violence-against-women-act-explainer-20180927-story.html">supporters of the act say</a>, the criminal legal system’s response to domestic violence will falter and violence will increase.</p>
<p>Although rates of domestic violence have fallen steadily since the legislation was enacted in 1994, the decrease in rates may not be a result of the act. Initially, those declines mirrored decreases in the overall crime rate. </p>
<p>And <a href="https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/ipv9310.pdf">between 2000 and 2010, rates of domestic violence actually fell less</a> than the drop in the overall crime rate – at a time when VAWA was pumping hundreds of millions of dollars into the criminal system.</p>
<h2>Failing to stop</h2>
<p>The criminal system isn’t deterring domestic violence for a number of reasons. <a href="https://poseidon01.ssrn.com/delivery.php?ID=259097009024029102115001018066096029123007000049022045107096127085099067105070123006031042029004023031050115110028116094123019019010040063095090086017000026051016013073124024020096111087025115093023078068090116000073008097102025107094086065122&EXT=pdf">Criminologists question whether the criminal law serves as a general deterrent</a> for any kind of crime. </p>
<p>I am a lawyer who has represented victims of domestic violence for almost 25 years and studied the legal system’s response to intimate partner violence for the last 15 years. As I argue in my new book, “<a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520295575/decriminalizing-domestic-violence">Decriminalizing Domestic Violence: A Balanced Policy Approach to Intimate Partner Violence</a>,” the increased involvement of the criminal system over the last 40 years has done little to solve the problem. Criminalizing domestic violence exacerbates some of the factors that cause it in the first place. </p>
<p>Here’s how that happens:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Having a criminal record is a surefire way to decrease one’s chances of finding a job, particularly for men of color. Research shows that under- and unemployed men are more <a href="https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/199709.pdf">likely to commit domestic violence</a>. </p></li>
<li><p>Incarceration is traumatic; inmates are regularly victims of, or witnesses to, violence. Upon release, men who have been incarcerated for domestic violence <a href="https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1030&context=law_journal_law_policy">bring that trauma back into their communities</a> and their intimate relationships. <a href="http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.891.4416&rep=rep1&type=pdf">Trauma is closely linked to committing</a> domestic violence. </p></li>
<li><p><a href="https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/199709.pdf">Domestic violence is more common in low-income, unstable communities</a>. These are the kinds of communities created when significant proportions of their residents have been incarcerated. </p></li>
</ol>
<h2>Harsh response favored</h2>
<p>VAWA’s reliance on the criminal system comes from a time when Democrats and Republicans alike believed that being tough on crime was the answer to violence against women. Former Vice President <a href="http://time.com/3319325/joe-biden-violence-against-women/">Joe Biden</a>, the act’s primary sponsor and most vocal advocate in the Senate in 1994, has consistently called domestic violence a criminal issue.</p>
<p>At its passage in 1994, <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/282302806_The_State_of_Intimate_Partner_Violence_Intervention_Progress_and_Continuing_Challenges">62 percent of VAWA money</a> was dedicated to the criminal system; 38 percent funded social services. By 2013, 85 percent of VAWA monies were being funneled into the criminal system. </p>
<p>But I argue that the act could do more good if it focused on some of the underlying causes of intimate partner violence. VAWA could fund job creation and training efforts for men who need work. It could invest in community-based programs that would challenge community norms around violence, teach community members to intervene productively, and shore up community infrastructure, addressing the instability that causes domestic violence. It could shift money into programs like <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3641144/">Fathers for Change</a> that target the intersection of domestic violence and substance abuse.</p>
<p>The version of the act currently being debated in Congress continues to fund law enforcement disproportionately. But it also has some promising new provisions that deal with domestic violence outside of the criminal system.</p>
<h2>Shift away from punishment</h2>
<p>For the first time, the act would pay for alternative justice measures designed to help victims of violence find justice without requiring them to turn to the legal system. </p>
<p>Restorative justice, for example, enables victims of violence to enlist community support in holding their partners accountable. <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/violence-against-women-act-expiring-september_us_5b6b0a4ae4b0de86f4a789db">Lisalyn Jacobs</a>, who worked on the act’s reauthorizations in 2005 and 2013, notes that these grants recognize that VAWA has been too focused on the criminal system. They are, she says, “an acknowledgment that there’s a significant population of people who need services and who are not engaging with law enforcement.” </p>
<p>The act also provides new ways to remove guns from those who abuse, a measure that could <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-guns-domestic-violence/gun-laws-targeting-domestic-abusers-tied-to-fewer-homicides-idUSKCN1BT2N9">decrease domestic violence homicides</a>. And it increases protections for those in federal public housing. <a href="https://nnedv.org/mdocs-posts/2017-report/">Housing is the single greatest need</a> identified by victims of intimate partner violence. Indeed, <a href="https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/dvhomelessness032106.pdf">domestic violence is one of the primary causes of homelessness</a> for women, and losing public housing can be disastrous for victims of violence. The new version of the act would <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/6545/">prevent victims of domestic violence from being evicted</a> as a result of their partners’ crimes and allow for early lease termination and emergency transfers without penalties.</p>
<h2>Improvement, not perfection</h2>
<p>The new provisions don’t make the 2018 version of the Violence Against Women Act perfect. </p>
<p>I believe that it still relies too heavily on the criminal system. It doesn’t do enough to address the causes of intimate partner violence: economic distress, adverse childhood experiences and trauma, unstable communities. VAWA monies that currently go to the criminal system could instead be used for job training and economic empowerment programs, home visitation programs, anti-violence education for young adults and community-based justice.</p>
<p>Legislation could encourage law enforcement to target serious, habitual offenders and create incentives for developing <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257588178_Strength_at_Home_Group_Intervention_for_Military_Populations_Engaging_in_Intimate_Partner_Violence_Pilot_Findings">innovative programs that can change abusive behavior</a>. </p>
<p>The 2018 act is a start. But I believe the United States is still far from developing a balanced policy approach to intimate partner violence.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/103734/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Leigh Goodmark does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>As lawmakers debate the future of the primary federal program aimed at ending domestic violence, one scholar says the criminal system supported by the legislation isn’t the way to stop that violence.Leigh Goodmark, Professor of Law, University of Maryland, BaltimoreLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/828972017-09-12T01:17:12Z2017-09-12T01:17:12ZThe smart home could worsen domestic abuse. But the same technology may also make us safer<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185225/original/file-20170908-9585-u7l6uc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Smart home technology, such as cameras, could be used as part of domestic violence.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cctv-building-front-elevator-153228896?src=slGlEBNeqW9EBoyKOpDNlw-1-29">Vasin Lee/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Digital technology is increasingly used in domestic and family violence, and the so-called “smart home” could make it worse.</p>
<p><a href="https://law.uq.edu.au/research/our-research/using-law-and-leaving-domestic-violence/domestic-violence-case-studies">Recent case studies and research</a> show that almost any technology can be used for abusive purposes, from social media to GPS-trackers.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/domestic-violence-and-australian-churches-why-the-current-data-have-limitations-81467">Domestic violence and Australian churches: why the current data have limitations</a>
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<p>The smart home, complete with its network of sensors, smart locks and internet-connected cameras, will complicate the situation further and especially increase the potential for surveillance-based abuse.</p>
<p>In the context of domestic and family violence, smart homes have a Jekyll and Hyde quality: a smart home could become a vector for technology-facilitated aggression, but it could also be part of the solution.</p>
<h2>What is technology-facilitated abuse?</h2>
<p><a href="http://dfvbenchbook.aija.org.au/understanding-domestic-and-family-violence/following-harassing-and-monitoring/">Technology-facilitated abuse</a> is the use of tools such as social media, mobile phones and tracking devices to <a href="http://wesnet.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/WESNETNNEDV-Power-Control-Wheel-onepage.pdf">stalk, monitor, threaten and abuse</a>. For the abuser, it is typically inexpensive and easy to carry out. </p>
<p>This is now a common form of domestic and family violence. In <a href="http://www.smartsafe.org.au/sites/default/files/ReCharge-Womens-Technology-Safety-Report-2015.pdf">a 2015 survey</a> of 546 domestic violence workers, 98% said they had clients who had experienced technology-facilitated abuse.</p>
<p>In an ongoing <a href="https://law.uq.edu.au/research/our-research/using-law-and-leaving-domestic-violence">Queensland-based study</a>, many women who had experienced domestic and family violence and engaged with the legal system reported that they underwent technology-facilitated abuse during the relationship, or after it had ended. </p>
<p>Reports of abuse included a partner:</p>
<ul>
<li>hacking into email and social media accounts </li>
<li>monitoring internet use and disabling internet connections</li>
<li>using GPS devices in cars and smartphones to track movement and location</li>
<li>recording conversations and monitoring text messages through covert use of apps</li>
<li>posting abusive messages and images via text and social media. </li>
</ul>
<p>Such abuse can make the victim feel like the <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1077801216646277">abuser is everywhere</a>, even when separated, and can make them <a href="https://advocacy4oromia.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/stakeholderpaper_6.pdf">fear for their safety</a>. </p>
<p>Most importantly, technology-facilitated stalking is dangerous. Research shows that in cases involving domestic violence, <a href="http://www.coronerscourt.vic.gov.au/resources/54bbc2f9-bb23-45c0-9672-16c6bd1a0e0f/vsrfvd+first+report+-+final+version.pdf">stalking</a> is a <a href="http://dfvbenchbook.aija.org.au/dvbb/docs/Bench-Guide-for-Recognizing-Dangerousness-in-Domestic-Violence-Cases.pdf">risk factor</a> for homicide or serious harm. </p>
<h2>Ingrid and Susan</h2>
<p>The experiences of two Australian women, Ingrid and Susan, show how technology can be used as part of domestic violence. <a href="https://law.uq.edu.au/research/our-research/using-law-and-leaving-domestic-violence/domestic-violence-case-studies">The interviews</a> were part of a three year longitudinal study of women’s engagement with law as a response to domestic violence.</p>
<p>Ingrid separated from her violent partner, Scott, and moved to a women’s shelter with her daughter, Emily. She kept the address of the shelter secret from Scott so she and her daughter would be safe. Yet somehow, Scott discovered the address.</p>
<p>Distressed, Ingrid left the shelter to stay with friends. Again, Scott managed to discover where she was. She decided he must have been tracking her. But how? </p>
<p>Then she remembered Scott had given Emily a doll. He had insisted that Emily keep it with her. She opened up the back of the doll and found a <a href="https://law.uq.edu.au/research/our-research/using-law-and-leaving-domestic-violence/domestic-violence-case-studies">GPS device</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://law.uq.edu.au/research/our-research/using-law-and-leaving-domestic-violence/domestic-violence-case-studies">Susan</a> explained how her partner installed cameras throughout the house. One day as she came out of the bathroom, naked, the camera moved towards her, following her. </p>
<p>She realised he was able to access the cameras remotely and “spy” on her. Susan separated from her partner and now lives with her parents. There are cameras installed at her parents’ home too, but she feels that they keep her safe.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/F46W7M4q4iU?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Technology, Privacy and Domestic Violence.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Smart home: new forms of surveillance and control</h2>
<p>The smart homes of the future will be <a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2017/08/14/541699733/our-homes-may-get-smarter-but-have-we-thought-it-through">dense with sensors</a> and digital home assistants that open doors, track temperature and even order groceries.</p>
<p>But the data collected by smart home devices will also tell us a lot about the residents’ behaviours and patterns. So while the smart television can listen and respond to a user’s verbal commands or physical gestures, it will also be able to identify who is sitting on the couch. </p>
<p>Data from these sensor collection points, particularly when aggregated, could become a home-made surveillance infrastructure for perpetrators of domestic violence.</p>
<p>A motivated abuser will be able to use these data for forms of <a href="https://ieet.org/index.php/IEET2/more/Danaher20160427">intimate surveillance</a> and the construction of what can feel like a coercively controlled <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-aronson-fontes-phd/it-felt-like-love-but-it-was-coercive-control_b_7512278.html">“prison of the soul”</a>.</p>
<h2>Can the smart home be a safe space?</h2>
<p>Susan’s experience shows that technology (cameras, in her case) used for abuse can also be used to protect. Could the same apply to the smart home? </p>
<p>Smart home sensor data that can identify the intimate behaviours of victims could also be used to identify the perpetrator’s patterns of abuse, violence and control. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-need-to-be-cautious-when-assuming-cctv-will-prevent-family-violence-78250">We need to be cautious when assuming CCTV will prevent family violence</a>
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<p>This raises a whole new set of questions: can we use smart home data to better identify and report abusers, while protecting victims of domestic and family violence? Should the smart TV inform law enforcement of verbal or physical violence? Can a smart door securely lock at the nearby presence of a perpetator’s mobile phone?</p>
<p>If the smart home is to be a safer space, then we need to consider challenging questions about individual privacy and autonomy, as well as the shifting nature of the home and its role in family and domestic violence.</p>
<p><em>The case studies mentioned use pseudonyms to protect the identity of the participants and others involved.</em></p>
<p><em>The <a href="https://www.esafety.gov.au/women/take-the-tour#/">eSafety Commissioner</a> and the <a href="https://wesnet.org.au/safetynet/safetynetdocs/">Women’s Services Network (WESNET)</a> have guides to assist women who are victims of technology-facilitated-abuse. These issues will also be discussed at <a href="https://law.uq.edu.au/occ-forum/smart-homes">an upcoming event</a> at the University of Queensland.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/82897/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Heather Douglas receives funding from Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark Burdon does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Can we use smart home data to better identify and report abusers, while protecting victims of domestic and family violence?Mark Burdon, Senior Lecturer, The University of QueenslandHeather Douglas, Professor of Law, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/765802017-04-26T01:59:40Z2017-04-26T01:59:40ZBackyard skinny-dippers lack effective laws to keep peeping drones at bay<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/166713/original/file-20170425-13386-rss3v7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">New technologies make it easier than ever for peeping Toms – and the law isn't much help to stop them.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SFW_Depiction_of_Nude_Bathing.jpg">Gisele Porcaro/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Recent advances in technology mean we can no longer rely on fences or barriers around our homes to protect our privacy. This was certainly the case for Darwin resident Karli Hyatt, who on Tuesday explained to the ABC’s <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/lawreport/regulating-eyes-in-the-sky/8466636">Law Report</a> how a drone invaded the security and privacy of her suburban backyard.</p>
<p>Hyatt had returned home last week from an evening gym session, undressed and jumped into her secluded backyard pool. She thought she was “skinny-dipping” in private. Within minutes, though, a small camera-mounted quadcopter drone was hovering close overhead. Hyatt is certain it was watching her, although there was no operator to be seen. </p>
<p>She describes the experience as initially shocking and has ongoing concerns about who might have been flying the drone and why. The result is an erosion of trust and cohesion in her neighbourhood and a feeling of insecurity in her own home. You can listen to the ABC interview <a href="https://radio.abc.net.au/programitem/pgW6zemDyG?play=true">here</a>.</p>
<h2>What laws might apply to this case?</h2>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/166717/original/file-20170425-13411-1u4p9dz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/166717/original/file-20170425-13411-1u4p9dz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/166717/original/file-20170425-13411-1u4p9dz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=716&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166717/original/file-20170425-13411-1u4p9dz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=716&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166717/original/file-20170425-13411-1u4p9dz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=716&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166717/original/file-20170425-13411-1u4p9dz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166717/original/file-20170425-13411-1u4p9dz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166717/original/file-20170425-13411-1u4p9dz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A camera-mounted drone quadcopter can now be bought and flown without a licence in Australia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%85%D9%84%D9%81:Spying_quadcopter.jpg">succo/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) <a href="https://theconversation.com/new-relaxed-drone-regulations-will-help-the-industry-take-off-57201">relaxed rules on privately operated drones</a> last year, <a href="https://theconversation.com/got-a-drone-for-christmas-know-the-law-before-taking-to-the-skies-70341">although some restrictions remain</a>. However, flying a drone over private property isn’t illegal under CASA rules, nor is filming someone from it. Aircraft are generally permitted overflight of properties; otherwise they could fly only over public land. </p>
<p>In fact, most Australian states have barred home owners from suing aircraft operators for causing “nuisance” by overflight. </p>
<p>Although the Northern Territory is one of the few exceptions, the courts are still resistant to claims of nuisance against aircraft without proof of persistent and continuing interference with the property. One or two overflights (even on the same day) are unlikely to be enough to establish this.</p>
<p>Unlike its common-law cousins, <a href="https://theconversation.com/new-drone-rules-with-more-eyes-in-the-sky-expect-less-privacy-66202">Australia lacks a tort of privacy</a>. This is based on the conventional view that it would effectively prohibit people looking over each other’s fences. If you don’t like that happening – the old reasoning goes – you should build a higher fence. </p>
<p>Although most common-law countries have moved past this view, Australia hasn’t. This means Karli Hyatt couldn’t sue the drone operator (if she could find them) for a breach of privacy. </p>
<p>What all Australian jurisdictions have criminalised is harassment and stalking, however conducted. But these laws generally require a “pattern of behaviour”. </p>
<p>In the NT, for instance, it would have to be proved that the activity involved intentionally watching Hyatt “<a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nt/num_act/dafva200734o2007300/s7.html">on at least two separate occasions</a>” with the “intention of causing harm” to her or causing her to “fear harm”. Given she doesn’t know who was flying the drone or why, this will be hard to prove. </p>
<p>That said, this case does appear to involve a breach of the relaxed CASA flight rules; the drone was being flown at night, within 30 metres of her and out of sight of the operator. But because she doesn’t know who was flying the drone she can’t identify someone to report to CASA.</p>
<p>If it happens again she can’t prove it is the same drone – as would be needed to apply nuisance, harassment and stalking laws – nor the intentions of the operator. </p>
<p>One of the reasons drone rules were relaxed is that CASA simply cannot monitor every privately operated drone. CASA also insists it cannot be responsible for <a href="https://www.casa.gov.au/aircraft/landing-page/flying-drones-australia">policing privacy breaches</a> by drones. But there isn’t another agency that can effectively do this. </p>
<p>With no regulatory agency, no tort of privacy, (nearly) no nuisance and inapplicable harassment and stalking laws, there isn’t much law when it comes to peeping Toms using drones around our homes and private spaces.</p>
<h2>Technology has left law behind</h2>
<p>Critics of increased protections against “privacy-invasive technologies” such as drones argue that we are already subject to surveillance by CCTV and satellites. They also point out that neighbouring properties often overlook modern dwellings.</p>
<p>In those situations, however, the person being observed is put on reasonable notice or can easily identify the observer. We can build a higher fence, plant a hedge, or install a blind. If someone has filmed us from a neighbouring apartment, the footage will likely reveal who was doing it or from where. If we are accidentally recorded on Google Earth, there is a single company to negotiate with or put pressure on. </p>
<p>However, technologies like drones really do seem to change the privacy landscape. The sheer number of them, their mobile nature and the inability to identify who is operating them limit our ability to protect ourselves from prying eyes. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Off-the-shelf drones allow users to fly around neighbourhoods filming in high resolution.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>As Karli Hyatt’s case shows, simply expecting home owners to build higher fences is no longer really applicable, so it might be time for the law to step in. </p>
<h2>What can be done to protect privacy?</h2>
<p>In 2014, a Commonwealth parliamentary committee delivered a report, <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Social_Policy_and_Legal_Affairs/Drones/Report">Eyes in the Sky</a>. It recommended reforming laws on harassment and stalking and introducing a tort of privacy for unreasonable interference into private spaces – as did the <a href="http://www.alrc.gov.au/publications/serious-invasions-privacy-dp-80">Australian Law Reform Commission</a> the same year. Yet such rules depend on proving who was operating the drone in the first place. </p>
<p>Commercial operators must notify CASA of their intention to fly a drone. Untrained non-commercial operators do not, which means there is no record of who is flying drones and where. </p>
<p>Almost all off-the-shelf drones contain GPS and flight recorders. One technical/legal solution might be to require that they also be fitted with a mobile SIM card (just as your tablet can have a cloned SIM card from your mobile). Flight data would then be automatically uploaded to the cloud-based government database whenever the drone was within reach of a mobile network. </p>
<p>Tampering with the recorder would be illegal. This would allow CASA, the police or private citizens to establish who was flying a drone. </p>
<p>While there might be some technical or logistical obstacles, and some infrastructure costs for government, this proposal would not overwhelm CASA with the burden of directly regulating the increasing number of drones. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Drones have many positive uses, such as firefighting. (Note: this video is from before the relaxing of drone rules.)</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Most drone owners act in good faith and respect others, but a few rogue ones misusing the technology may turn the public tide. Drones have many socially positive uses, but spying on people in their own homes is not one of them. The law needs to help residents protect themselves against such invasions.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/76580/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brendan Gogarty does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A surprise intrusion by a drone on a Darwin woman skinny-dipping in her secluded backyard pool highlights the many weaknesses of current privacy and stalking laws.Brendan Gogarty, Senior Lecturer in Law, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/437032015-07-08T04:27:15Z2015-07-08T04:27:15ZRevenge porn is just one part of a changing picture of harassment<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86478/original/image-20150626-16889-11dgtrs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The law enforcement response to online harassment needs to be modernised to meet the changing technological environment.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Google’s <a href="http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com.au/2015/06/revenge-porn-and-search.html">recent decision</a> to remove content at the request of victims of revenge porn is a huge win for victims. Governments are also reacting to the growing problem of revenge porn – the <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/nsw-parliament-to-target-revenge-porn-20150706-gi66sg.html">NSW government</a> this week announced a parliamentary inquiry into existing laws and whether there was any need for reform.</p>
<p>The offence of revenge porn usually involves the following aspects:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>an existing or previous relationship; </p></li>
<li><p>an intent to cause harm;</p></li>
<li><p>the unauthorised public release of intimate images; and</p></li>
<li><p>the act is facilitated by technology.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>While this is neither a legal definition nor an exhaustive one, it does capture the concept of how <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/what-is-revenge-porn-9580251.html">revenge porn</a> is seen in today’s society. But is revenge porn just one example of technology intersecting with sexual and domestic violence? And what legal efforts have been made to combat it?</p>
<h2>The rise of revenge porn</h2>
<p>A number of factors have driven the rise in incidences of revenge porn. This includes the wide availability to create content through devices such as smartphones and the ability to distribute this content via the internet and other communication channels.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.endrevengeporn.org/revenge-porn-laws/">Various legislative acts</a> in jurisdictions around the world provide for specific revenge porn offences. These typically contain requirements of non-consensual distribution or publication of intimate images, intent on the part of the offender, and the infliction of harm.</p>
<p>While a number of jurisdictions have enacted legislation to combat revenge porn, substantial challenges for law enforcement remain. First, police action requires the victim becoming aware of images being posted. Second, offences of this nature often are transnational in nature – they occur in multiple countries and multiple legal jurisdictions. This poses investigative challenges in securing the evidence needed to prosecute. </p>
<p>Third, the acts are often deliberately conducted in such a way as to preserve the offender’s anonymity.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86085/original/image-20150623-19403-1pbmwkm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86085/original/image-20150623-19403-1pbmwkm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86085/original/image-20150623-19403-1pbmwkm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=354&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86085/original/image-20150623-19403-1pbmwkm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=354&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86085/original/image-20150623-19403-1pbmwkm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=354&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86085/original/image-20150623-19403-1pbmwkm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=444&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86085/original/image-20150623-19403-1pbmwkm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=444&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86085/original/image-20150623-19403-1pbmwkm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=444&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Comparison of US and international revenge porn laws.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Terry Goldsworthy</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Google is the latest in a series of <a href="http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/06/19/google-to-remove-revenge-porn-images-from-search-results/">high-profile internet companies</a> to enact a removal policy. Reddit, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/13/twitter-revenge-porn-ban_n_6856730.html">Twitter</a> and Facebook have already initiated such policies.</p>
<p>Google will consider the removal of material only once users have submitted an online request. The final decision as to whether content should be removed remains a matter for Google. </p>
<p>Though Google has identified that the decision was motivated by its appreciation of the destructive nature such material has on (mostly female) victims, it is consistent with Google’s current policy of removing sensitive personal information such as bank account numbers and signatures. </p>
<p>However, the announcement is not <a href="http://siliconangle.com/blog/2015/06/23/bad-idea-why-google-shouldnt-be-involved-in-removing-revenge-porn-on-its-own-volition/">universally welcomed</a>. The decision to remove revenge porn has been cited as a potential infringement of the right to free speech. </p>
<p>But, the criticisms are not all centred on civil rights arguments. Legitimate concerns are raised as to how exactly the policy will be administered and how Google will deal with historic revenge porn images that have been freely available. </p>
<h2>Is revenge porn just part of a wider picture?</h2>
<p>Much focus has been on the rise of revenge porn. But is it just a reflection of a growing trend in the intersection of technology with sexual and domestic violence? Revenge porn is arguably a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/olivia-wilson/revenge-porn-is-more-than_b_7641876.html">digital extension</a> of sexual violence. </p>
<p>That stalking, domestic violence, intimate partner violence and sexual assault are all linked in some way is not a <a href="http://jiv.sagepub.com/content/12/3/420.short">new idea</a>. Research has consistently shown that victims affected by these offences experience psychological and physiological symptoms including, but not limited to, depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress <a href="http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED449712">disorder</a>. They may also in some circumstances be at risk of physical harm – for example, physical assault or forced sexual contact.</p>
<p>Generally, cyberstalking is <a href="http://www.valetk.com/pdfs/cyberstalking.pdf">defined</a> as stalking or harassing another person with the use of the internet, e-mail, or other electronic communication devices. Some argue that this definition should <a href="http://jiv.sagepub.com/content/19/4/468.full.pdf">include the requirement</a> that such communication would make a reasonable person afraid or concerned for their safety.</p>
<p>In the past, recommendations have been made for specific laws to target stalking on the internet, as it is viewed as an <a href="http://www.ojphi.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1086/1006">entirely new type of crime</a> or behaviour, similar to the response for revenge porn. Others contend that cyberstalking is a covert form of stalking and merely a <a href="http://www.academia.edu/1498146/is_cyber_stalking_different">new means</a> for offenders to pursue their victims.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86212/original/image-20150624-819-6d51kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86212/original/image-20150624-819-6d51kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86212/original/image-20150624-819-6d51kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86212/original/image-20150624-819-6d51kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86212/original/image-20150624-819-6d51kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86212/original/image-20150624-819-6d51kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=548&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86212/original/image-20150624-819-6d51kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=548&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/86212/original/image-20150624-819-6d51kt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=548&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">How technology has impacted on criminal activity.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Terry Goldsworthy</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Cyberstalking research</h2>
<p><a href="http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED449712">Surveys</a> in the US have shown that approximately one-quarter of female stalking victims are contacted and harassed via e-mail or <a href="https://www.victimsofcrime.org/docs/src/baum-k-catalano-s-rand-m-rose-k-2009.pdf?sfvrsn=0">instant messaging</a>. Cyberstalking <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/15564880801938169">behaviours</a> are most likely to involve: </p>
<ul>
<li><p>threatening, harassing or obscene e-mails; </p></li>
<li><p>live chat harassment or online verbal abuse; </p></li>
<li><p>threatening or obscene calls to a cell phone; </p></li>
<li><p>improper messages on message boards; and </p></li>
<li><p>text and instant messaging. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>The scourge of cyberstalking is considered <a href="http://jiv.sagepub.com/content/19/4/468.full.pdf">just as damaging</a> as any other type of pursuit behaviour. It can lead to the same types of physical and mental harm. An <a href="http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/stalkingresponses">ongoing stalking survey</a>, exploring victim responses, is looking at, among other things, the use of online technology to harass someone. </p>
<p>While there have been <a href="http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/queensland-nude-photos-uploader-near-impossible-to-prosecute-20150624-ghwol5.html">further calls</a> for specific legislation to deal with issues like revenge porn, that in itself will not be the solution. In many states, traditional laws already capture revenge porn as an offence. </p>
<p>Making police investigations more effective by addressing the <a href="http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/nude-photos-of-hundreds-of-queensland-women-posted-online-20150622-ghuec0.html">investigative barriers</a> is much more important. In essence, the law enforcement response needs to be modernised to meet the changing technological environment.</p>
<p>Technology’s rise has impacted our lives in almost very aspect, and the nature of criminal acts is no exception. It is how prepared we are to meet this challenge, and how effective our responses are as a society, that will be the true indicators of success in combatting new and emerging criminal threats.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/43703/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Terry Goldsworthy is presenting at the 2015 International Symposium of the World Society of Victimology in relation to this topic.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew is presenting at the 2015 International Symposium of the World Society of Victimioloy in relation to this topic. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joseph Crowley does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Is revenge porn just one example of technology intersecting with sexual and domestic violence? What legal efforts have been made to combat it?Terry Goldsworthy, Assistant Professor in Criminology, Bond UniversityJoseph Crowley, Senior Teaching Fellow, Bond UniversityMatthew Raj, PhD Student and Teaching Fellow, Bond UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/333212014-10-22T17:55:23Z2014-10-22T17:55:23ZTackling online trolls doesn’t need a bigger stick – just a more effective one<p>There is a vocal minority on social media that <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2014/10/22/yesallmen-online-harassment-isnt-just-a-womens-issue-it-hurts-guys-too/">use the platforms to attack others</a>, often with impunity. </p>
<p>These cyber bullies or online trolls, use words and in some cases other means to cause harm – for example releasing sexually explicit images, referred to as “revenge porn”. </p>
<p>A recent case is that of <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/29648755">Chloe Madeley</a>, daughter of daytime television presenters Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan, who received abuse including death and rape threats on Twitter following her mother’s comments on the case of <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/oct/19/ched-evans-no-remorse-rape-woman">footballer and convicted rapist Chad Evans</a>. </p>
<p>With social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter barely a decade old, the UK House of Lords Select Committee on Communications looked into the nature of online abuse. In its report in July the committee <a href="http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201415/ldselect/ldcomuni/37/37.pdf">stated</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Our overall conclusion is that the criminal law in this area, almost entirely enacted before the invention of social media, is generally appropriate for the prosecution of offences committed using the social media.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So why now the fuss about the <a href="http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2014-15/criminaljusticeandcourts.html">Criminal Justice and Courts Bill</a>? Well, it extends jail sentences to <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29678989">two-years</a> for those guilty of online trolling and abuse. Why has the view emerged that the internet is such a potential threat to the social order that the only option is more laws?</p>
<h2>Laws already exist, and are used</h2>
<p>The Lords committee was quite correct in that existing legislation can be applied to online acts. Part 1 of the <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1986/64/section/19">Public Order Act 1986</a> covers abusive and threatening words and writing likely to cause distress. <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1986/64/section/19">Parts 3 and 3A</a> cover the dissemination of material aimed at stirring up racial, religious or sexual hatred. The <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1997/40/section/1">Protection from Harassment Act 1997</a> includes online stalking. The <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/27/section/1">Malicious Communications Act 1988</a>, which is very broad in scope, sanctions sending grossly offensive, indecent, threatening or false electronic messages for the purposes of causing distress. And the <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/21/section/127">Communications Act 2003</a>, even wider in scope, sanctions the use of a public communications network for sending grossly offensive or menacing messages.</p>
<p>In fact these laws have already seen convictions and injunctions handed down by the courts for online behaviour. For example, the case of <a href="http://www.5rb.com/case/r-v-sheppard-whittle/">the Tales of the Holohoax</a>, in which a comic book aimed at casting doubt on the existence of the Holocaust was deemed racially inflammatory. Or the case of an animal rights protester who published a graphically manipulated photograph he’d taken of an animal testing lab’s security guard in a way <a href="http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2008/438.html">that was deemed harasssment</a>. </p>
<p>In other examples a teenager <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/aug/21/facebook-bullying-sentence-teenage-girl">posted death threats on Facebook</a>, a man attempted to blackmail a student by <a href="http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/TCC/2011/3454.html">distributing intimate photos of her on the internet</a>, and another student <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-17515992">posted racially offensive comments on Twitter about a footballer</a>. Two Twitter users were jailed for <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jan/24/two-jailed-twitter-abuse-feminist-campaigner">menacing a feminist campaigner</a>.</p>
<h2>What would new laws bring?</h2>
<p>In most of these cases the defendants are liable for a summary conviction at a magistrates’ court and imprisonment for no longer than six months (51 weeks for harassment or stalking), or a fine. The proposed amendments to the law stem from the view that the law as it stands is not sufficient deterrent for those acting online.</p>
<p>The Criminal Justice and Courts Bill would modify the <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/27/introduction">Malicious Communications Act 1988</a> to allow, on indictment, up to two years’ imprisonment for more serious offences or up to 12 months for less serious offences warranting a summary conviction. Amendments to the Bill also include a new offence to address the problem of <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/11175567/Revenge-porn-victim-Hannah-Thompson-demands-helpline-to-kill-explicit-online-pictures.html">revenge porn</a>.</p>
<p>It is certainly true that cyber bullying and revenge porn cause serious and often irremediable damage and are especially aggravating due to the fact they frequently target women and girls. So there’s a legitimate argument that making them specific crimes would make society’s disapproval of such behaviour clear.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/62536/original/d4xvmttp-1413990843.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/62536/original/d4xvmttp-1413990843.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62536/original/d4xvmttp-1413990843.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62536/original/d4xvmttp-1413990843.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62536/original/d4xvmttp-1413990843.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62536/original/d4xvmttp-1413990843.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62536/original/d4xvmttp-1413990843.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Do not feed the trolls.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Internet-Meme_auf_einem_Stra%C3%9Fenschild.JPG">WIKImaniac</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Better, not bigger, sticks</h2>
<p>However, that would require careful drafting of well-tailored legislation. If the long list of offences above shows anything it is that legislators have a tendency to produce sweeping, far-reaching and often ill-defined provisions. These have sometimes been applied very rigidly by courts, resulting in sentences that seem severe, if not wholly arbitrary.</p>
<p>This is exactly what happened in the case of <a href="http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/QB/2012/2157.html">Paul Chambers</a>, whose tweet of exasperation in the form of a joking threat to blow up an airport led to a conviction, overturned only after two appeals. In another case <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2012/feb/06/sunderland-fan-guilty-racist-tweets">Peter Copeland</a> pleaded guilty to tweeting racist remarks during an online argument about football. These cases demonstrate that the sweeping nature of the Communications Act and the Malicious Communications Act is particularly problematic and liable to lead to inappropriate sentences. </p>
<p>In effect, if changes introduce harsher penalties without clearly delineating the scope of the offences, there is still a risk of courts handing down sentences that seem arbitrary or unjust.</p>
<p>Another solution might be to refine what we have with clear prosecution guidelines that deal explicitly with the way social media is used. At least in this regard, the <a href="http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/a_to_c/communications_sent_via_social_media/">2013 guidelines</a> adopted by the Crown Prosecution Service are a step in the right direction. It would also be useful to ensure social media and eventually search engines implement standardised and effective take-down procedures where highly offensive or harassing comments can be quickly found and removed.</p>
<p>The internet – and social media in particular – is still perceived in highly ideological, and therefore simplistic, ways. Bad things can potentially happen to anyone online, not only to the rich and famous. So it is very easy to stoke fears and anxieties and convince the crowd that we need yet another, stronger stick to “once and for all” tame unruly online behaviour – whatever that law’s potential reach beyond its stated aims.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/33321/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sophie Stalla-Bourdillon does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>There is a vocal minority on social media that use the platforms to attack others, often with impunity. These cyber bullies or online trolls, use words and in some cases other means to cause harm – for…Sophie Stalla-Bourdillon, Lecturer in IT and IP law, University of SouthamptonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/227002014-02-17T19:42:26Z2014-02-17T19:42:26ZHunting the hunter: how to effectively combat stalking<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/40870/original/54v55df2-1391661691.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Stalking is an increasing crime trend in the wider community, which is exacerbated by the availability and use of social media.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>What do <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/9802/26/spielberg.stalker/">Steven Spielberg</a>, <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1306840/Leonardo-DiCaprio-granted-restraining-order-delusional-stalker-claims-shes-wife.html">Leonardo DiCaprio</a>, <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/sandra-bullock-gets-restraining-order-against-stalker-8556059.html">Sandra Bullock</a>, <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2344856/Hugh-Jackman-stalker-threw-razor-filled-pubic-hair-actor-deemed-mentally-unfit-trial.html">Hugh Jackman</a>, <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2012/02/10/showbiz/madonna-stalker/">Madonna</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_David_Chapman">John Lennon</a> have in common? They have each, at one time or another, been victims of stalking. </p>
<p>Local radio host Sophie Monk has been subjected to <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2541036/Sophie-Monk-visits-Sydney-police-station-file-complaints-against-cyber-stalker-arrested-charge-tweeting-150-sexually-explicit-messages-day.html">recent unwanted attention</a> in the form of stalking, having been confronted with up to 150 sexually explicit and threatening posts on Twitter every day. The investigation led to the arrest of the suspect, who became the first individual charged with cyberstalking an Australian celebrity.</p>
<p>However, stalking is not a phenomenon exclusive to celebrities. In fact, the offence is a concern for mainstream society. The majority of stalking occurs between ex-partners following the dissolution of a relationship. The situation of an ominous stranger following you, lurking in the bushes, is rare.</p>
<h2>How prevalent is stalking in the community?</h2>
<p>Victorian Police <a href="http://www.police.vic.gov.au/content.asp?a=internetBridgingPage&Media_ID=72176">statistics</a> show a 27.7% increase in harassment offences between 2012 and 2013, including conduct such as stalking and using phone, postal service or listening devices to menace, harass and offend. </p>
<p>Of the 4875 harassment offences recorded in Victoria for the year 2012-13, some 1138 – or 23% – remain unsolved. In Queensland, the <a href="http://mypolice.qld.gov.au/queensland-crime-statistics/">figures</a> are even more startling. Between January and November 2013, stalking offences increased 162%. </p>
<p>The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4906.0Chapter9002012">estimated</a> that 19% of women in Australia will be stalked at some stage in their life. Females are more likely to be victims of stalking than males. Existing population-based <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359178906000450#">studies</a> report a lifetime prevalence of stalking ranging from 2-13% for males and 8-32% for females. </p>
<p>An Australian <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1046/j.1440-1614.2002.00985.x/abstract">study</a> conducted in 2002 found that nearly one in four people (both men and women) will be stalked in their lifetime. About one in five victims suffer some form of physical assault by their stalker. </p>
<p>Research has consistently shown that victims are exposed to threatening behaviours over prolonged periods of time. Their experiences have been described by them as “emotional or psychological rape”. The bad news is that the average duration of stalking episodes is <a href="http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/170/1/12.short">24 months</a>, with <a href="http://dro.deakin.edu.au/view/DU:30002769">studies</a> showing that episodes that continue longer than two weeks can indicate that stalking is likely to continue for much longer and become more intrusive. </p>
<h2>The impact of stalking</h2>
<p>Those who have experienced stalking as a victim will know how intrusive and harmful it can be. Stalking has been described as “psychological terrorism” and “rape without sex”. </p>
<p>Invariably, when a person is stalked, their thoughts are dominated by the whereabouts and intentions of their stalker. The target of pursuit is thinking about their pursuer, and the pursuer their target. Trapped in this destructive cycle, the majority of victims accept that they do not know what action to take to effectively abate the stalking. </p>
<p>The use of cyberspace to pursue another or to elicit personal information about a particular target has recently caught media attention with high-profile cases involving <a href="http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sophie-monks-cyber-stalking-terror-i-sleep-with-the-light-on/story-e6freuy9-1226791259780">Sophie Monk</a> and Brisbane netballer <a href="http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/opinion/editorial-romelda-aiken-internet-stalker-case-a/story-fnihsr9v-1226815720916">Romelda Aiken</a>. </p>
<p>Their accounts serve as a reminder of the prolific nature of stalking. But what are victims expected to do once they are aware that they are being stalked?</p>
<p>Is there a perfect solution to being pursued? When is the best time to take action? And can responding make things worse?</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/40859/original/zncdystx-1391660252.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/40859/original/zncdystx-1391660252.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/40859/original/zncdystx-1391660252.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/40859/original/zncdystx-1391660252.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/40859/original/zncdystx-1391660252.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/40859/original/zncdystx-1391660252.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/40859/original/zncdystx-1391660252.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Australian actress Sophie Monk has recently been in the headlines over an alleged stalker.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Tracey Nearmy</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Which victim responses are best?</h2>
<p>When faced with a stalker, the victim has a number of options available to them to potentially stop the behaviour. Do they take down their Facebook page or move house?</p>
<p>Not only is it important what victims do to try and stop the stalking through action, but the timing of their reactions can potentially influence the duration and severity of the stalking behaviour. The timing of a victim response is currently the subject of research to determine whether a delay in response can mean a longer duration of stalking.</p>
<p>Determining which methods are deemed best for deterring or abating incidents of stalking, and whether deploying responses at an early stage has any effect on stalking duration and intensity, will allow for victims to respond in a more effective manner. As the majority of stalking occurs following the breakdown of a relationship, it’s quite possible that a pursuer sees persistence as a method of success in re-establishing that relationship. </p>
<p>A failure on the part of the target to unequivocally assert that their stalker’s persistence is (and will remain) futile may mean a continuation in the harassment. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08934219809367683">Research</a> has shown that the more victimisation a person experiences, the more they resort to a variety of attempts to manage the stalking behaviour. Many methods have attracted criticism, specifically the use of civil injunctions to reduce the risk of violence and continued stalking. </p>
<p>Injunctions are commonly breached and experts argue that civil orders are not an absolute safeguard from harm since they are just pieces of paper. Few studies, however, have explored the methods deployed by victims of stalking and then yielded empirical evidence to show how a particular intervention impacts on an offender and how this might reduce the stalking behaviours. </p>
<p>A 2011 <a href="http://jiv.sagepub.com/content/26/6/1129.short">study</a> showed that over 70% of female targets of stalking accepted they “did nothing” to thwart the stalking, and 90% stated that they responded by “acting nicely” toward their stalker. Both of these responses were rated, by the same victims, as highly ineffective against their stalking episode. </p>
<p>By contrast, less than 4% of the same sample took “legal action”, yet they rated this response as highly effective against stalking. </p>
<p>There can be little doubt that stalking is an increasing crime trend in the community. It is only exacerbated by the availability and use of social media as a vehicle to commit the offence.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/stalkingresponses">Current research</a> is being undertaken to determine what effect, if any, certain responses by victims will have on reducing the impact of stalking. This research will hopefully provide direction as to best practice when dealing with the perpetrators of this type of unwelcome behaviour.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/22700/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>What do Steven Spielberg, Leonardo DiCaprio, Sandra Bullock, Hugh Jackman, Madonna and John Lennon have in common? They have each, at one time or another, been victims of stalking. Local radio host Sophie…Terry Goldsworthy, Assistant Professor, Bond UniversityMatthew Raj, PhD Student and Teaching Fellow, Bond UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.