A senate committee voted Monday to send a bill that would extend protection orders to all victims of stalking – no matter their relation to their stalker. Senator Grant Burgoyne (D-Boise) wrote the bill, which he says will help fix a gap in the system.
Right now, Idaho law on protection orders is narrow. Order can only be granted to stalking victims who have been in a qualifying relationship with their stalker – either a domestic or family relationship.
Savannah Goodman of Twin Falls testified in favor of the proposal.
Goodman says when she worked for a property management company last year, one of her tenants began stalking her. She says she looked up his criminal record and found rape and kidnapping charges against him.
“He refused to stop contacting me," says Goodman, "and repeatedly sent threatening texts and emails that had a profoundly negative impact on my well-being and the well-being of my children, my parents, my friends.”
Goodman says when she tried to get a protection order against him, she found out her circumstance didn’t qualify. She quit her job because of the harassment and fear she faced from her stalker.
Advocates of the anti-stalking proposal say the bill could help people like Goodman. The bill heads to the full Senate next.
Find Frankie Barnhill on Twitter @FABarnhill
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