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Inside the Mind of Celebrity Stalkers: Not Your Average Kind of Crazy
October 09, 2008 9:30 AM
By Joanna Schaffhausen, ABC News Medical Unit
Famous people, be they movie stars, professional athletes or politicians, all have special talents or good looks that draw us to them. But it turns out they attract a special kind of stalker as well -- the psychotic kind.
I’ve never longed to be famous; too much attention makes me uncomfortable. So it was somewhat surprising in my junior year of college when I discovered I had a stalker of my very own. His name was Dan, and we went out on exactly one date. He was polite but a bit strange. Over dinner he demonstrated his ability to speak Klingon, the made-up language from "Star Trek," and he had trouble keeping eye contact.
When he asked me out again, I put him off, claiming to be too busy. But then I couldn’t shake him. He started turning up outside my dorm and my classes. Uncomfortable, I always said hello but moved away quickly, making more excuses.
Dan started watching my dorm room and tracking my comings and goings. He called every few minutes, and if I happened to be on the phone with someone else, he got angry and made threats to “kill any guy” who was interested in me. I told him to leave me alone but he kept calling, begging for another chance.
When he followed me home from college to my parents’ house, I got scared. We called the police and gave them Dan’s information. They promised to talk to him, and thankfully, it seemed to work. I never heard from him again.
Dan spooked me, but according to new research, I shouldn’t have been too worried. Psychologists say that most stalkers of everyday people are simply socially inept or suffering from depression.
But celebrity stalkers are more likely to suffer from serious mental illness, Australian and British researchers reported at the 19th International Symposium on the Forensic Sciences on Tuesday in Melbourne, Australia. Paul Mullen, a forensic psychiatrist at Monash University and the Victorian Institute of Forensic Mental Health in Victoria, Australia, and his colleagues examined files of disturbed individuals who had stalked members of the British Royal Family.
Their results are detailed in a report in the British magazine The New Scientist.
“The Mullen team examined in detail the files of 250 of the remaining 5000 people judged to be true stalkers. About 80% had a serious psychotic illness, including schizophrenia, delusions and hallucinations, they found," according to the report.
The finding contrasts sharply with people who stalk nonfamous people.
"Typically a fifth of stalkers have some sort of serious or severe psychotic disorder," says forensic psychologist Rosemary Purcell of the University of Melbourne, Australia.
It makes some sense if you stop to think about it: People who stalk celebrities are typically basing their affections on imaginary connections, having never personally interacted with their target. Dan and I at least knew each other face-to-face.
But the increased level of psychosis in celebrity stalkers also makes them more dangerous. Mullen’s research finds that stalkers are responsible for roughly half of attacks on VIP targets, including the most serious assaults.
Since my experience with Dan, I’ve had the chance to read "The Gift of Fear" by Gavin De Becker, a security advisor for the government, large corporations and celebrities. The book is considered a must-read, especially for young women.
De Becker writes that women are socialized to be friendly at all times, even when it places their personal safety at risk. It’s a mistake I made many times with Dan. I didn’t want to seem rude. Instead of saying “no, I am not interested in going on another date with you,” I made excuses that gave him hope for a continued relationship.
Even when he started to scare me, I kept answering the phone and talking to him on the street. De Becker advises women who are being stalked to keep a record of phone calls or e-mails but not to answer them. If you ignore 20 calls but answer the next, it teaches your stalker he has to make 21 calls to get your attention. And for many of these people, negative attention is just as good as real affection.
For celebrities, the situation is different. They just have to smile for the camera, and some stalkers take it as encouragement.
In the "The Gift of Fear," De Becker recounts the case of Michael Perry, who stalked singer-actress Olivia Newton-John in 1983. Perry was already known to De Becker and law enforcement officials when he went on a murderous rampage in Louisana, killing five members of his family. Perry had written letters to Newton-John, claiming she was responsible for dead bodies rising from the floor of his home. De Becker feared she would be Perry’s next target.
While watching Newton-John’s home to see if the escaped madman would turn up there, De Becker found evidence of two additional stalkers on the property. But Perry never showed. Instead, he was apprehended in Washington, D.C., where authorities believe he was stalking another one of his famous targets, former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.
Obviously, VIP targets need the help of professionals like De Becker. But his advice is just as valuable for everyday people. Trust your instincts. If you sense danger, heed that signal and remove yourself from the situation as soon as possible. Politeness will not help you if your life is on the line.
October 9, 2008 | Permalink | User Comments (22)
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I disagree that celebrity stalkers are more violent or psychotic than your average everyday variety. What makes them more dangerous is their access to you, they know where you are, where you live. The police can't protect you, because they haven't "done" anything yet. Heaven knows the average person can't afford to pay body guards. Who ever did this research, needs to get their heads out of celebrity butts and check out what really goes on in everyday life.
Posted by: samhiguchi | Oct 9, 2008 10:17:35 AM
Just wanted to say that Gavin DeBecker's "Gift of Fear" is an excellent book that I have also read, and it helped keep me safe when I was living alone. It's really a must-read!
Posted by: Mina | Oct 9, 2008 12:00:37 PM
You can disagree all you want, but typically research doesn't lie. You need to get your head out of your own butt and realize until you actual study something you know nothing and shouldn't spew your ignorant comments across the internet.
Posted by: what | Oct 9, 2008 12:42:44 PM
I'm willing to be the people who did this research know more about the subject than samhiguchi. You don't just present guesses at a symposium of your peers. This is a serious study, and if they found such a large proportion of celebrity stalkers are seriously disturbed, that's what they found. Whether that jibes with your unresearched gut feeling about the subject is irrelevant.
Posted by: Keldroc | Oct 9, 2008 12:46:04 PM
Posted by: Joss | Oct 9, 2008 12:53:00 PM
I have a stalker. His name is Ceiling Cat and he's watching me...
Posted by: RC | Oct 9, 2008 1:01:23 PM
The National Center for Victims of Crime has a Stalking Resource Center with very good information and statistics about stalking for anyone who's interested in getting more facts. The website is www.ncvc.org.
Posted by: jbr | Oct 9, 2008 1:07:01 PM
samhiguchi: The average person can't afford body guards, but the average person can afford a pistol.
Posted by: geniusiknowit | Oct 9, 2008 1:30:36 PM
although I don't agree with samhiguchi's opinion, i trust the facts of the study, there is a point to that. a lot of states have no safe guards from stalking. a personal friend of my had a stalker who followed her everywhere she went. literally, if she was in public he was walking two feet behind her. he sat out in front of her house, school and work. he watched her every single move. but he couldn't be arrested because he never said a word to her. in many states, ours happens to be VA, harassment is defined as unwanted verbal or physical communication. since he never said a word or touched her, he was safe from the law. this went on for two years, regardless of how she tried to get away he always found her.
She beat him when she finally started dating again. this infuriated her stalker to the point he actually broke into her bedroom and she was able to call the police and he was taken away. she is safe now, but had to move and change her name.
States need to have more strict policies on stalking to prevent things such as this. in my friends case, this man had delusions of a relationship and was not going to hurt her until he felt she was "cheating"
Posted by: mel | Oct 9, 2008 1:53:45 PM
I disagree with the concept that women need to fear stalkers more than men. Yes, we're socialized to be polite, but so are a lot of guys... and guys are expected to tough out on situations like this, and female stalkers are for some reason considered more harmless. I've known three guys who were stalked by women. One almost lost his job because of it. The two others were scared, but didn't know what to do about it, fearing that law enforcement wouldn't take them seriously. One confronted her with a group of friends standing by. The other lucked out... she got distracted by a new target.
Posted by: Liz | Oct 9, 2008 1:54:38 PM
women stalking men is also a big problem. many of them have attachment disorders or borderline personality issues. these women in some ways are even MORE dangerous then men. its a psychological thing, you go on one date and you are the love of their life. in my practice I have dealt with several of these women and they honestly believe "it was love at first sight". they literally fail to see the other persons viewpoint. they love you and they assume you love them back, and this causes the stalking. when they man they follow starts to break away from her, the woman feels cheated and revenge comes in. its a really tough cycle to break and creates some extreme dangerous situations.
Posted by: addison | Oct 9, 2008 2:09:49 PM
samhiguchi's right.
If the police started anticipating crimes, instead of responding to them, all the idiots would be screaming "police state!"
You need to protect yourself, not rely on others to watch over you and fend off bad people. There are people out there who are just bad -- predators, rapists, perverts, parasites and other failures -- and until our society elects to confine them on the basis of being useless, you have to defend yourself against them.
If you don't want a gun, get pepper spray -- but if you ask me, you need something potential lethal, if even a baseball bat, in case something goes wrong. A fire extinguisher isn't a bad weapon on a pinch because you can blind someone and then knock 'em cold.
Posted by: Vijay Prozak | Oct 9, 2008 2:14:44 PM
Vijay Prozak you realize that you can get arrested for assaulting someone who is stalking you if they have done nothing to provoke it.
its a good idea to carry pepper spray but to use it unprovoked is a terrible idea.
let me guess.. are you an lifetime NRA member? dont worry, im not trying to take yer guns 'n' boobies away, im just trying to encourage people not to be stupid. we have police for a reason
Posted by: les | Oct 9, 2008 2:22:45 PM
I side with les! if they person is doing nothing illegal you cant just walk up to them and shoot them...
Posted by: alamas | Oct 9, 2008 2:24:48 PM
"If the police started anticipating crimes, instead of responding to them, all the idiots would be screaming "police state!""
I can't believe this was seriously stated.
If you actually believe it is dumb for someone to expect the Police to enforce laws based on some subjective interpretation of what the perp probably _intended_ on doing ("I could see it in his eyes, your honor.") Then I would encourage you to admit yourself into an asylum. You are not fit to participate in society.
Even if you think you are being "Stalked", whatever action is taken against the alleged "stalker" should be based solely on their actions.
Posted by: daedric | Oct 9, 2008 3:16:28 PM
all these guys who do stuff like this,check their childhood and see
how they became this way.
Posted by: randy | Oct 9, 2008 3:37:01 PM
addison: Male stalkers are more prone to outward violence, i.e. harming the person they're stalking, women tend to be self-destructive and if there is any violence, it will be towards themselves. The movie Fatal Attraction got a LOT of criticism about the ending, if that's what you're thinking about. Glenn Close herself wanted to change the ending, but the producers thought the audience would rather see a violent ending. A person like Glenn Close's character would most likey have attempted suicide, not murder.
Posted by: Ann | Oct 10, 2008 9:45:03 AM
"I’ve never longed to be famous; too much attention makes me uncomfortable. So it was somewhat surprising in my junior year of college when I discovered I had a stalker of my very own."
What does wanting or not wanting to be famous have anything to do with being stalked?? The first six paragraphs of this article are self indulgent and have little to do with celebrity stalkers. I think it's the writer who needs psychiatric care to deal with her "issues."
Posted by: Balky | Oct 10, 2008 5:44:27 PM
I Don't Agree. Celebrity Stalkers are Not Worse. The Everyday Average people get Stalked more and To a much Higher Degree of Danger. Remember, Ted Bundy?
he did not stalk Celebrities. He stalked the average women. There are tons of more cases like that too.
Posted by: julie | Oct 11, 2008 4:16:21 PM
Any stalker should be exterminated or imprisoned for life without parole. They are criminal mutants and should not be tolerated by anyone. Feel this strongly because I have been stalked by both genders. It is awful, awful. It got to the point that I always carry an axe handle sawed off to billy club length with me at all times. It is even in my brief case. If you have ever been stalked, you know what I'm talking about, posting here. BTW, the LEOs cannot do much and forget a restraining order as it is just a piece of paper.
Posted by: Longtree | Oct 12, 2008 7:29:30 AM
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