It’s time to end stalking and protect domestic violence victims

On a nice weekend, I will ride my motorcycle for a few hours to clear my head and reflect on the previous week at the Statehouse. Our vehicles are much more than a mode of transportation. For many of us, they are a place of solitude, reprieve and respite. Maybe we sit for 15 minutes and listen to the radio to calm down after a hectic work day or take a 30 minute drive along Narragansett Bay at the end of the work week. Either way, we expect a certain level of privacy in our vehicles.
I was outraged to learn that no Rhode Island law stops someone from hiding a device on your car to monitor its movements. As a result, anyone, even domestic abusers, can track another person’s whereabouts with little to no legal recourse. Even more distressing was that I heard about this loophole from domestic abuse advocacy groups, after they taught me about the dangerous correlation between stalking and domestic abuse.
Recent advances in technology – such as smartphones and GPS – have only enabled domestic abusers and further distressed victim advocacy groups. Stalking technology is more affordable, more sophisticated and more prevalent than ever before. Domestic abusers and the monitoring equipment they use to stalk their victims have stretched far beyond the parameters of our criminal code.
This is an issue with a potential large impact on the lives of Rhode Islanders. According to the CDC, one out of six women have been victims of stalking at some point in their lives and, in Rhode Island, approximately 58,000 women have been stalking victims. The Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence testified in support of my legislation and stated that “it is essential that laws are updated to apply to new methods of stalking, and to prevent abusers from taking advantage of the lack of laws to abuse and stalk with impunity.”
Due to an antiquated statute, courts are struggling to prosecute this predatory behavior among domestic abusers. Therefore, we must modernize Rhode Island’s stalking laws to afford comfort, privacy and protection to victims of domestic abuse. Time is of the essence for these victims. This year, my first order of business on the House floor was introducing my anti-stalking bill. The bill has now passed the House and the Senate and is awaiting the governor’s signature.
Abusers that lurk in the shadows, tracking their victims every movement, strive to show power over their victims. But, in reality, they are cowards. My legislation will criminalize their cowardly acts and further protect Rhode Islanders from stalking and domestic violence.
Nicholas A. Mattiello represents District 15 in Cranston and is the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

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