WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) announced the passage of their bipartisan resolution designating January as National Stalking Awareness Month. The resolution raises awareness of the dangers of stalking and highlights the need for law enforcement to prevent this predatory behavior. Approximately 1 in 3 women in the U.S. have experienced stalking at some point in their lives. Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Debbie Dingell (D-MI) introduced a companion resolution in the House of Representatives.
“As a former prosecutor, I have seen firsthand the serious emotional and physical toll stalking can take on victims,” said Klobuchar. “This resolution will raise awareness about the dangers of stalking, underscore the need to protect victims, and highlight the resources available to help survivors get their lives back on track.”
“Far too many Americans have suffered physical and psychological trauma as a result of stalking. Often, these individuals are forced to significantly alter their daily lives to preserve their own safety. This month, we reflect on the pervasiveness of stalking and the serious hardships and dangers faced by victims. The work of advocates raising awareness, of law enforcement and courts taking preventive and punitive action and of service workers in providing help to victims are all worthy of our thanks,” said Grassley.
This resolution is cosponsored by the three other woman senators on the Judiciary Committee—Senators Laphonza Butler (D-CA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)—along with Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Mike Crapo (R-ID).
As the former Hennepin County Attorney and a senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Klobuchar is a national leader in the fight to prevent domestic violence.
Provisions from Klobuchar and Dingell’s legislation to close the “boyfriend loophole” and prevent abusive dating partners from buying or owning firearms were signed into law as part of the landmark Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.
Last year, Klobuchar, Fitzpatrick, and Dingell introduced updated bipartisan, bicameral legislation to strengthen provisions closing the ‘boyfriend loophole.’ The Strengthening Protections for Domestic Violence and Stalking Survivors Act prevents convicted stalkers and all former dating partners convicted of a domestic violence offense from buying or owning firearms, regardless of when the relationship occurred.
In August 2023, Klobuchar, Fitzpatrick, and Dingell filed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to uphold the constitutionality of existing protections for victims of domestic violence. The brief, which was filed in United States v. Rahimi, highlights the history of bipartisan support for common sense limits on the ability of domestic abusers to access firearms and the harms that invalidating those restrictions would cause.
In March 2022, Klobuchar’s bipartisan legislation to establish trauma-informed training programs for law enforcement was signed into law. The Abby Honold Act, which Klobuchar led with Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) and Representative Tom Emmer (R-MN), was inspired by Abby Honold, a former student of the University of Minnesota and rape survivor, who has worked to promote the use of trauma-informed techniques by law enforcement when responding to sexual assault crimes.
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