Over the past few years these two activities have come to prominence. As a result of one person’s, persistent work alongside the Home Office the UK now has legislation. The
‘Protection From Harassment Act 1997’ is very much the work of one
person Evonne von Heussen M.B.E. CHAPTER THREE C 1/2/09 3:33 pm Page 16
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Evonne wrote the body of work which became the Bill and eventually the Act and she is the acknowledged expert on stalking and harassment. Sadly, as is always the case, there is now a a profusion of ‘so called experts’ trying to relieve victims of money for their services. Those of us in the Close Protection field have had these same individuals with ‘made up’ backgrounds come out of the woodwork as experts! and we know who they are as they, as usual, convince others, who have no means of knowing to the contrary, of their credibility and expert status. If you are a victim of stalking or harassment then you most certainly do not need an ‘expert’ whose only purpose is to relieve you of your money.
Even as Evonne von Heussen was writing the legislation attempts were made by others to ‘hijack’ the work and claim it as their own. One female MP, who shall remain nameless attempted this, only to be forcibly prevented by an ‘honest’ Home Office who were working closely with Evonne. Another organisation involved in personal safety also saw commercial advantage in being seen as the organisation who were taking the lead, so as to further gain financial reward, but this was patently not the case and remains so despite their many media attempts to
be associated with the preparation of the legislation.
Evonne von Heussen was herself a victim of persistent stalking for 13 years by a former University lecturer, who first noticed Evonne when she attended two lectures. For three years not knowing who was responsible she received obscene calls and letters, pornographic photographs, photos of herself and her daughters, had acid poured on her car and dead flowers left on her doorstep, some taken from graves with RIP labels still attached. In 1978 he turned up at her home and carried out an assault. Despite the police being called they considered it a ‘domestic’ and left with issuing to the man a caution. From then on her life was shattered as she was dogged by this man for years to come. It was not until 1992 that the attention finally ceased and It was not until 1994, some 16 years later that she was able to write about the situation .
Dogged by nightmares and a constant feeling of being hunted Evonne still finds it difficult to be alone with male company and to be confined or not to feel in complete control. Even having to have anaesthetic makes her feel this loss of personal control. Her stalker had followed her everywhere, threatened her and her two daughters
P E R C E P T I O N S & F E A R O F C R I M E
persistently and communicated with both hate and love mail and by phone, even tracking her down when she moved and tracing ex-directory numbers. The tragedy deepened as Evonne's daughter Kirstein, also became a victim of a stalker.
As a consequence of her own bitter experience Evonne determined two things, one that she would provide help for other victims of this ‘unrecognised’ and unlegislated against crime and second that she would attempt to achieve the impossible by forcing the advent of legislation even against concerted resistance in many quarters. From her start in 1994 with her initial drafting of the work, some three years later she was travelling the UK with members of the Home Office, members of the Lord Chancellor’s Department, a representative of the Crown Prosecution Service and various police representatives on training missions following commencement of the Protection From Harassment Act (1997 ) - a remarkable achievement by any standards.
Prior to embarking on the problem of legislation Evonne and Kirstein had founded The National Anti-stalking and Harassment Association (NASH) later to be renamed following the legislation
as The National Association for the Support of Victims of Stalking and
Harassment, but still known as NASH.
At the same time as having to write the legislation and argue it’s need Evonne has dealt with nearly 9,000 victims of stalking, through the NASH help-line, 3,000 media requests, received 84 death threats and actually counselled 78 stalkers i.e.18 men and 60 women. Nash is now recognised as the only legitimate non-profit making organisa- tion for the counselling of both victims of stalking and harassment and their assailants. This covers stalking in its truest sense, school bullying and neighbour harassment. It has forged links internationally and has the largest body of experience to bring to bear in it’s counselling and advice work. The following is a brief summary of some facts about stalking supplied by NASH. Between January 1994 and January 1997 some 16,569 people had contacted the Association’s crisis line. Many calls are not genuine and there are in the UK a small, but persistent band of ‘serial victims’ who claim to the police, press and other less skilled organisations that they are victims of stalking, some of whom have appeared on national television. The figures broke down as follows:-
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8,097 actual victims of stalking, (i.e. 210 men and 7,887 women). TheseP E R C E P T I O N S & F E A R O F C R I M E
victims fall into three distinct categories which will be outlined later.
•
3,211 persons who report general harassment by neighbours, gangs and children.Many of the victims are either elderly people, children who are being bullied by older teens or by adults and people who are being bullied or stalked within the workplace. It also includes obese, gay and disabled people who are victimised because of what they are.
•
1,120 people with psychiatric disorders.These callers have reported that generally they have been hearing voices in their heads, or being ‘controlled’ by electronic forces via their radios and television sets. These people are only stalked by their own mental ‘bogey man’. Many have severe mental problems, need someone to talk to and have in many cases been let down by the system.
•
78 stalkers i.e. 18 men and 60 women.•
33% of female victims who made contact for help, advice and support were raped, or have suffered violent sexual abuse by their stalker.•
85% of victims are being stalked by an ex-partner (Post Relationship Stalking).Of these 55% had left violent, abusive relationships before the stalking began. In 22% of these cases children are involved and have often suffered sever effects due to the ordeal of the parents. Many children have suffered and endured physical, sexual and psychological violence.
•
10% of people are being stalked by people who are known to them on a casual basis (Casual Contact Stalking).•
5% of people are being stalked by people they claim to be unknown to the victim (Stranger Related Stalking).•
A small group of individuals, 78, have claimed to be victims of stalking(Fictitious Stalking) when in fact they
are making it up, often due to some other problem. Some of these people have very ‘high profile’ cases.
•
Between 1992 and Spring 1996, 17 stalking related deaths of victims have occurred nationwide (some of whom had contacted NASH). Only two of them were men.•
In addition, the suicides of 4 stalkers have been reported to NASH in the same period.•
Nash’s figures clearly show that women are more likely to be stalked than men. Sufficient data is not yet available to be accurate on the ratio, but figures from the States indicate a probability of 6:1 (6 women to 1 man).•
95% of all stalking victims (a combi-P E R C E P T I O N S & F E A R O F C R I M E
nation of people who have called the NASH help-line, or who have written) report inadequate help from the police. The remaining 5% have found the police very helpful and sympathetic, but they failed to make referral to any support agency such as NASH.
•
99% of victims felt that police officers with whom they were in contact were complacent, cynical, pre-judgemental, insensitive and unknowledgeable about the ordeal of being a stalking victim. Hopefully with the weight of legislation and better education the police will provide a better service to these victims of crime.•
A significant number of victims felt let down by the Crown Prosecution Service for a variety of reasons (this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone - PC)•
100% of all lawyers who contacted NASH for advice, complained of their frustration regarding the lack of knowledge exhibited by magistrates and by some judges and by other members of the the criminal justice ‘system’.As well as dealing with the victims and perpetrators of stalking over the same period NASH dealt with 3,790 media enquiries, 311 students from law, journalism, and psychology, 20 lawyers and 30 police officers.
NASH is affiliated to the National Victim Crime Centre in Washington D.C. and has many other International links. Currently establishing regional support groups NASH continues as the country’s leading support association for stalking and harassment.
Address:-
NASH
Bath Place Community Venture, Bath Place,
Leamington Spa
CV31 3AQ Tel/Fax 01926-850089 E-Mail [email protected]