The Unlawful Stalking of a Person

Abstract

Chapter 4 (“The Unlawful Stalking of a Person”) examines the definition of stalking as a criminal phenomenon. This chapter finds that, despite the difficulties faced by individual states in formulating their own definitions of stalking, a coherent approach allows stalking to be seen as constituting the repeated acts of a person which are of a frightening nature and cause disturbance and uneasiness. A coherent approach to stalking is necessary not only for a better understanding of its nature, but also for the application of criminal responsibility. Unlawful acts of stalking are usually regulated by separate norms in national criminal legislation, with the names of these norms specifically referring to unlawful stalking. However, acts constituting unlawful stalking may render a person criminally responsible even if an offense specifically referred to by that name does not exist in the criminal law of the state. The norm of systematic intimidation (Article 145(2) of the Criminal Code) applied in Lithuanian jurisprudence is an excellent example of this. Stalking as an independent criminal offense was also established in the Criminal Code of Lithuania in the chapter covering “Crimes against human freedom.” However, the new norm of unlawful stalking did not bring coherence to the assessment of repeated acts of intimidation, but instead created competition between general (Article 145 of the Criminal Code) and special (Article 148-1 of the Criminal Code) norms. This norm also posed one of the most significant challenges faced in this area: to identify criteria in the practical application of the norms that would help to distinguish cases of systematic intimidation from unlawful stalking.