Cyber
Stalking
Eileen Jennings, WSU Sophomore, Spanish and English
If
you’re one of millions of college students who are registered with Facebook, it’s likely that you’ve used the medium to look at a potential or past infatuation’s profiles, their posted pictures, their interests and “likes,” or even their daily schedules through frequent status updates about what they are doing on a day-to-day basis.
Using Facebook to check in on people may seem innocent enough, but as with all things in the world, innocence has a darker side. A horror story can begin and end with a social media website such as Facebook or Twitter. Cyber stalking has become one of the devious sides to social media sites that are most commonly used in our current generation. The careless placement of one’s personal information is the beginning to what could be a potentially terrifying end. More often than not, harassment is the end point of cyber stalking. Oftentimes this harassment begins with incessant calling, as with Kristen Pratt, the victim of Patrick Macchione, a former classmate at the University of Central Florida. Macchione bombarded Pratt with massive amounts of Facebook messages, Tweets and phone calls and even put videos up on YouTube threatening her life.
Social
Macchione was sentenced to jail for four years with 15 years probation. Pratt was never murdered; however, Lottie Spencer and her loved ones were not so lucky. Waseem Daker, a convicted murder, was charged for killing Karmen Smith and attempted homicide of Nick Smith, her son. Draker stalked Spencer 17 years ago when Daker began incessantly calling and showing up in random places that Spencer frequently visited. Cyber stalking has become simpler through recent technology Photo Credit: Corbis Images wellzine
dec-jan 2012/13
Daker appeared at her house and killed her roommate, Karmen Smith, and attempted to stab Nick Smith, as well.