The Defense for Stalking Charges

Stalking has always been considered a misconduct, but it becomes more perceptible due to the advent of social media and the latest technologies, which enable perpetrators to violate the privacy of their victims. Stalking is considered a crime under the US law and there are several legal provisions available to help the victims. Unfortunately, some people misuse these laws to fulfill their hidden agendas. If you have been wrongly accused of stalking, you can defend yourself against the charges by hiring an experienced criminal defense lawyer.

Forms of Stalking

Stalking comes in various forms, which include the following:

• Sending unwanted emails or gifts
• Following a person without their consent
• Recording a video or taking pictures of someone
• Planting a GPS device on someone’s vehicle
• Tapping a person’s phone calls or trailing their online activity and emails
• Threatening to harm the individual and their loved ones
• Inflicting damage to the individual’s property

Defense against Stalking Charges

In order to prove stalking charges, the prosecution must present or establish three elements:

• You repeatedly, maliciously, or willfully followed or harassed another individual.
• You actually threatened that individual.
• You showed a specific intent of placing the victim in reasonable fear of their safety.

A common defense when it comes to stalking charges is to claim the alleged victim is dishonest and trying to frame the accused person. This defense can be extremely difficult to prove, as your criminal defense lawyer will require a sufficient amount of evidence to support this claim. Solid proof might be an alibi, which demonstrates you were not stalking that individual.

Another defense for stalking charges is establishing the victim has mistakenly identified you as an individual who was stalking them. This might be the case if they are unable to clearly identify their stalker, or you fit the description of their stalker.

You can claim the alleged victim is falsely accusing you of stalking in vengeance or to fulfill their ulterior motive. For instance, an individual might have broken up with their partner, which triggered the latter to allege the former of a crime to take revenge. Again, your attorney will require to present solid arguments and proofs to authenticate this claim.

A skillful criminal defense lawyer will work to acquit you from the stalking charges by employing a combination of these defenses. They might use every point the prosecution was unable to prove beyond a reasonable point as a defense to help you get justice.

If you wish to know more about defense for stalking charges or schedule a free consultation, contact Ettinger & Besbekos at (708) 923-0368 to speak with an experienced criminal defense lawyer.