January is National Stalking Awareness Month

January is National Stalking Awareness Month.........I'm ashamed to say that i didn't know this. Its also a huge problem - bigger than what most people realize. Check out these stats from the Department of Justice:

Stalking Victimization in the United States, (1/13/09) found that 3.4 million persons identified themselves as victims of stalking in a 12-month period. This figure, which represents an increase of 2 million victims per year over the findings of a key 1998 study, suggests the urgent need for a more comprehensive response to the crime.

That's a staggering number. My instructor Steve Kardian is interviewed here on how to deal with stalking situations. One of the bigger problems with stalking is that with the advent of the internet has developed a new form of stalking via the internet. Websites like Facebook, LinkedIn, and MySpace only make it easier for people to be cyber stalked as well.

So what can a person do?

• Determine what (I call) your "cyber footprint" is: if you google your name and address what comes up? If there is information out there that you don't want people to see - do what you can to have the site remove it or change it on your own. Try to lessen your cyber-print as much as possible.
• Dump your home phone and get a cell-phone only. Especially a no contract phone. If this is not feasible get out of the phone book. Get an unlisted number. Or try to get the number listed in your pets' name.
• Try to go about your daily routine in condition yellow. Most people operate condition white and are oblivious to other people around them. In condition yellow you are aware of the situation around you and always paying attention. I.e.; Has that car been following you? Have you seen that guy before? Is someone watching you? Trust your instincts.

Privacy Rights Clearing House offers some very salient points:

1. Use a private post office box.. Residential addresses of post office box holders are generally confidential. However, the U.S. Postal Service will release a residential address to any government agency, or to persons serving court papers. The Post Office only requires verification from an attorney that a case is pending. This information is easily counterfeited. Private companies, such as Mail Boxes Etc., are generally stricter and will require that the person making the request have an original copy of a subpoena. Be sure to get a private mailbox that is at least two ZIP codes away from your residence. Use your private post office box address for all of your correspondence. Print it on your checks instead of your residential address. Instead of recording the address as "Box 123," use "Apartment 123." If you must use a traditional home mailbox, make sure it has a lock.2. Do not file a change of address with the U.S. Postal Service. Send personal letters to friends, relatives and businesses giving them the new private mailbox address. Give true residential address only to the most trusted friends. Ask that they do not store this address in rolodexes or address books that could be stolen.

3. Sign up for your state's address confidentiality program . Nearly half the states offer a no-cost mail-forwarding program that enables victims of domestic violence and stalking to protect their residential address. A few states limit the program to just the driver’s license or solely voter records. For a list, visit: www.sos.state.ok.us/acp/confidentiality_programs.htm

4. Obtain an unpublished and unlisted phone number. The phone company lists names and numbers in directory assistance (411) and publishes them in the phone book. Make sure you delete your information from both places. Do not print your phone number on your checks. Give out a work number or use an alternate number such as a voice mail number when asked – that is, a message-only number that is used solely for receiving recorded messages from callers.

5. If your state has Caller ID, order Complete Blocking (called "Per Line" Blocking in other states). This ensures that your phone number is not disclosed when you make calls from your home. (See PRC Fact Sheet 19 on Caller ID, www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs19-cid.htm .)

6. Avoid calling toll-free 800, 866, 888, 877 and 900 number services. Your phone number could be "captured" by a service called Automatic Number Identification. It will also appear on the called party's bill at the end of the month. If you do call toll-free 800 numbers, use a pay phone.

7. Have your name removed from any "reverse directories." The entries in these directories are in numerical order by phone number or by address. These books allow anyone who has just one piece of information, such as a phone number, to find where you live. Reverse directories are published by phone companies and direct marketers. Contact the major directories and request that you be removed from their listings:

• Haines Criss+Cross Directory, Attn: Director of Data Processing, 8050 Freedom Ave. N.W. , North Canton, OH 44720.
  By phone: Call (800) 843-8452 and ask for extension 312.
  
• Equifax Direct Marketing Solutions (formerly Polk):
  By mail: Equifax Direct Marketing Solutions, Attn: List Suppression File, 26955 Northwestern Hwy., South Field, MI 48034.
  Include your name, address, ZIP code and phone number.
  By phone: (888) 567-8688

8. Let people know that information about you should be held in confidence. Tell your employer, co-workers, friends, family and neighbors of your situation. Alert them to be suspicious of people inquiring about your whereabouts or schedule. If you have a photograph or description of the stalker and vehicle, show a photo or describe the person to your neighbors, co-workers, friends, family and neighbors.

9. Do not use your home address when you subscribe to magazines. In general, don't use your residential address for anything that is mailed or shipped to you.

9a. Do not accept packages at work or home unless they were personally ordered by you.

10. Avoid using your middle initial. Middle initials are often used to differentiate people with common names. For example, someone searching public records or credit report files might find several people with the name Jane Doe. If you have a common name and want to blend in with the crowd, do not add a middle initial. In fact, consider using your first initial and last name only in as many situations as you can.

11. When conducting business with a government agency,only fill in the required pieces of information. Certain government agency records are public. Anyone can access the information you disclose to the agency within that record. Public records such as those held by a county assessor, county recorder, registrar of voters, or state motor vehicles department (DMV) are especially valuable to a stalker, as are business licenses.

Ask the agency if it allows address information to be confidential in certain situations. If possible, use a post office box and do not provide your middle initial, phone number or your Social Security number. If you own property or a car, you may want to consider alternative forms of ownership, such as a trust. This would shield your personal address from the public record. (For more information on government records and privacy, see PRC Fact Sheet 11, www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs11-pub.htm .)

12. Put your post office box on your driver's license. Don't show your license to just anyone. Your license has a lot of valuable information to a stalker.

13. Don't put your name on the list of tenants on the front of your apartment building. Use a variation of your name that only your friends and family would recognize.

14. Be very protective of your Social Security number.. It is the key to much of your personal information. Don't pre-print the SSN on anything such as your checks. Only give it out if required to do so, and ask why the requester needs it. The Social Security Administration may be willing to change your SSN. Contact the SSA for details. (See PRC Fact Sheet 10 on SSNs, www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs10-ssn.htm .)

15. Alert the three credit bureaus--Experian, Equifax and Trans Union. Put a fraud alert on your credit reports to avoid fraudulent access. (See PRC Fact Sheet 17a on identity theft for information on establishing fraud alerts, www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs17a.htm .)

16. If you are having a problem with harassing phone calls,put a beep tone on your line so callers think you are taping your calls. Use an answering machine to screen your calls, and put a "bluff message" on your machine to warn callers of possible taping or monitoring. Be aware of the legal restrictions on taping of conversations.

Stay Safe!

Junk Science, Bogus Cops, and Health Fairs (oh my!)

The Fight Like A Girl program was at Childrens Hospital on Wednesday for their annual employee Health Fair. We had a nice poster and handed out information on Personal Safety(which is the first 4 rules in Fight Like A Girl). We also got to show off some really neat items such as hi-lumen flashlights and personal alarms. Take a look at our poster.

It was a good time and we got to schmooze with other community resources. Its always nice to get out and meet some very intelligent people - it forces me to keep up the pace as well. One of the questions posed to me was “does the recession have anything to do with the crime rate?”. Drawing back on my criminal justice education; I am racking my brain trying to remember any studies that addressed this.

Nevermind, that it was 6 degrees Fahrenheit outside and the only thing that I could think of was Quetelet’s Theory of Thermic Delinquency. Which postulates that in colder climates people commit property crimes (burglary, theft, B&E, etc.), but in warmer climates people commit person to person crimes (rape, robbery, murder, assault, etc.). This was later debunked by a 1974 study in Baltimore that showed no significant changes in crime trend patterns over a period of 3 years. Oh well, into the history books for bright-eyed criminology students to study (along with phrenology and body somatotypes).

Nonetheless, the question still bears some answering as to whether or not an economic recession/ depression increases crime? According to a security website it does (they list ways to protect against crime). As to whether or not their is a scientific correlation between the two the only thing we really have to draw on is from the Great Depression. Chicago Tribune writer Angela Rozas puts better ink to paper than i can so I'll leave you with her thoughts. Suffice it to say I don't think its ever a good time to let your guard down. Keep to your first rule: Always be aware of your surroundings.

This brings up another rumor I heard at the health Fair about a bogus police officer in a white caprice pulling ladies over and then supposedly raping them. Sherri Bevan Walsh, Summit Couny Prosecutor the rape bogus but the jist of the story is real. The Beacon Journal's website is bogged with rumors so rather than reposting I went to the Plain Dealer to get a better story. Bevan Walsh had this to say:

Bevan Walsh said people should follow these precautions when being pulled over by a police officer in a marked police cruiser:

• Pull over.

• Do not keep driving, as the officer will believe that you are fleeing and will give chase, which is dangerous to everyone.

• Once you have pulled over and if you are uncomfortable, roll the window down only enough to talk to the uniformed officer and ask them for additional identification. Each officer should be in uniform, and carry a badge and a separate identification card.

• If you are still uncomfortable, and you have a cell phone, call 9-1-1 to confirm the officer's presence.

• If you do not have a cell phone, ask the officer to call the radio room and to send a backup cruiser or officer to the scene.

Safety precautions when being pulled over by someone in an unmarked car with flashing lights:

• Be very careful and suspicious!

• Immediately call 9-1-1 to confirm if the stop is legitimate.

• As a general rule, unless you are engaged in illegal drug activities, you will not be pulled over by an unmarked car.

• The only other real police officer who might pull someone over in an unmarked car would be officers on private property such as a school officer, or an officer with the Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority. These officers may not have marked police cars. If you are on these or similar private properties, pull over. These officers should still be in uniform and should carry a badge and identification.

"In the end, I always say to use your instincts,[emphasis added]" she said. "If it doesn't feel right, it probably isn't. Call 9-1-1 to make sure." (source= http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/01/the_summit_county_prosecutor_i.html).

One thing they didn't tell you is that the Ohio Revised Code does not permit unmarked vehicles for traffic enforcement:

4549.13 Marking and equipment for motor vehicle used by traffic enforcement officers.

Any motor vehicle used by a member of the state highway patrol or by any other peace officer, while said officer is on duty for the exclusive or main purpose of enforcing the motor vehicle or traffic laws of this state, provided the offense is punishable as a misdemeanor, shall be marked in some distinctive manner or color and shall be equipped with, but need not necessarily have in operation at all times, at least one flashing, oscillating, or rotating colored light mounted outside on top of the vehicle. The superintendent of the state highway patrol shall specify what constitutes such a distinctive marking or color for the state highway patrol.

Effective Date: 10-25-1979

Stay Safe!

What's it like to Fight Like A Girl?

Somewhere along the line you found this blog and your probably wondering what's a Fight Like A Girl class like? Its a good question, your probably apprehensive about the course content, whether your getting your money & time worth, or if the instructor is qualified to teach this material. Those are all very pertinent questions.

Let me try to explain first what the course is (you can look at my instructor background to get some idea of my credentials under the profile section) first. The course is designed to teach you how to fight for your life in a worse case scenario - an assailant is trying to rape and kill you. We don't teach how to defend against muggers who just want your immediate cash on hand (though you will pick-up defenses for people who invade your space), we don't teach defense against ID theft (though that's a huge issue in and of itself). We stay focused on how to defend YOU and your body.

The class starts out with some introductory material that helps to inform you. I give this in a lecture format and also use DVDs to explain some basic principles. That's the first half hour of the course. After that we go into the physical aspects of the course. Then we go into the Teaching/ Practice/ Stress Algorithm:

1. We show you the technique and then teach the finer motor skills of the technique.
2. Then we have you practice the technique to learn the body mechanics. We really emphasize practice, the body actually develops a functioning record of a technique that is known as "muscle memory" as you practice it more often.
3. Therefore, in class we ask you to do the technique at least 5 times to become proficient with its understanding.
4. Then we put the Redman Suit on and add stress to the situation so that you can actually do the techniques against a trained instructor (instructors are professionals that have years of martial arts training and can take a full force kick - the suit helps though).

After a few times of teaching tecnique+ practice+ Redman Suit I had an entire class actually chanting "Redman, Redman, Redman"!!

After the hands on portion and plenty of Q&A we go back to the lecture format and watch a review section of the DVD to further solidify the techniques. And then adjourn for the evening. Participants get a student manual with the course and we also have an evaluation that helps us prepare for future classes. Here's a video of my Instructor Steve Kardian running one of his Fight Like A Girl/ Rape Escape classes (links to YouTube).