SPD: brings awareness to stalking

According to the Wyoming Department of Health, an estimated 16% of Wyoming women are stalked in their lifetimes. 

According to Wyoming State Statute 6-2-506, a person commits the crime of stalking if, with intent to harass another person, the person engages in a course of conduct reasonably likely to harass that person…

These courses of conduct include communicating, following, placing a person under surveillance or otherwise engaging in a course of conduct that harasses another person. 

While speaking on intimate partner violence during an appearance on Sheridan Media’s Public Pulse, Sheridan Police Department Lieutenant James Hill told listeners stalking is an offense the SPD addresses with the utmost seriousness. 

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in the United States in 2019, females (1.8%) were stalked more than twice as often as males (0.8%). In that same year, an estimated 67% of victims of both traditional stalking and stalking with technology were fearful of being killed or physically harmed.

The upcoming month of October is Domestic Violence Awareness month. The month presents an opportunity for advocacy and trauma centers, law enforcement and the community as whole to address domestic violence related issues and bring awareness to the victims of this crime. According to the WDH, an astounding 33.9% of women and 30.5% of men in the Cowboy State have experienced intimate partner physical violence, sexual violence, or stalking in their lifetimes.

If you are in need of help, call the Advocacy and Resource Center at 307-672-3222 or in the case of an emergency, dial 911. To learn more, click here.