Cyberstalking In Legislation

Gwen Moore & Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Courtesy of New York Times.

Local, state and federal governments have put laws in position to protect against cyberstalkers that do not infringe their First Amendment rights. One might say that this is the single most startling concern about these laws. Because the individual behind a cyberstalking case is hard to track down, many states do not have laws addressing online stalking specifically.

The State of Michigan v. Archambeau case in 1996 was the first case in the United States’ history that involved cyberstalking. Andrew Archambeau met a woman through an online dating service. The two exchanged emails during their relationship. When Archambeau was asked to stop contacting the woman, he ignored her and continued to send her emails and leave voice mails. Archambeau was alter charged with misdemeanor under Michigan’s cyberstalking law.

Until 2006, the closest legislation law to protect against such acts was the 18 U.S. Code 875. The federal legislation code stated that transmissions of threats through using any type of electronic devices is prohibited. Before this, law enforcement had to prove that there was a credible threat to the victim or at least two acts that can lead to credible threat.

In 1997, the Supreme Court ruled in Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union case that the previsions from Communications Decency Act of 1996 were vague and did violate First Amendment rights. The regulations put limitations on offensive and indecent transmissions to those under 18 years old. The Supreme Court said that it was not specific enough to protect speech that is allowed by the First Amendment. Side note: hate speech, fighting and voguer words are not protected under the First Amendment. The Court, also, recognized that threats are not protected by the government.

In more recent events, President George W. Bush signed Violence Against Woman and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005. The act simply extended multiple provisions from the Violence Against Woman Act of 2000. “Preventing Cyberstalking” is the topic of Section 113.