Stalking Victimization, 2019

• NCJ Number: 301735
• Date Published: February 2022
• Author(s): Rachel E. Morgan, Ph.D.; Jennifer L. Truman, Ph.D.; BJS Statisticians
• Length: 24 pages
• Agencies: BJS
• Publication Type: Statistics; Publication

Abstract

This report provides data on U.S. residents age 16 or older who were victims of stalking in 2019 and the types of stalking behaviors they experienced. It details the demographic characteristics of victims who were stalked, including traditional stalking and stalking with technology, during a 12-month period. It also describes the characteristics of stalking victimization, including the victim-offender relationship, self-protective actions taken by the victim, patterns of reporting to police, and whether the victim contacted a victim service provider after the victimization. Findings are based on the 2019 Supplemental Victimization Survey to the National Crime Victimization Survey.

Highlights:

• About 1.3% (3.4 million) of all persons age 16 or older were victims of stalking in 2019.
• The percentage of persons who experienced stalking declined from 1.5% in 2016 to 1.3% in 2019.
• Less than a third (29%) of all stalking victims reported the victimization to police in 2019.
• In 2019, females (1.8%) were stalked more than twice as often as males (0.8%).
• In 2019, an estimated 67% of victims of both traditional stalking and stalking with technology were fearful of being killed or physically harmed.