Though many of us might not like to admit it, stalking isn’t uncommon, despite carrying a federal felony charge that comes with a fine of up to $250,000, and up to five years in prison. Unfortunately, it’s a difficult thing to prove, and victims often ignore the problem, hoping it will simply pass.
While the crime affects women more often, men are harassed as well, and even celebrities struggle with shaking loose a persistent stalker. TikToker JenRoseBell, who goes by Jen Jen on the app, took all the necessary steps to keep herself safe, but the system can only do so much.
Taking to the app, the pre-med student shared a short and surprisingly uplifting TikTok to ease her anxiety. The five-second clip utilizes the iconic Ginnifer Goodwin line, “I need to buy a gun,” over the caption “When your 4yr restraining order ends at midnight and ur stalker has been active the past few months… but the courts are closed on weekends.”
Stalking is a widespread problem. 1-in-3 women experience stalking in their lifetime, per the Office on Violence Against Women. It’s a form of control, and stalkers often harass and humiliate their victims by unexpectedly showing up at their homes, jobs, school, or even family members’ homes. They send their victims barrages of messages, emails, and phone calls, and can even extend the abuse to family members and friends.
And that’s not the worst of it. Stalkers often escalate the situation, in the worst cases leading to deadly consequences for their victims. Stalking is a “significant risk factor for intimate partner homicide,” and police are often unable to help victims until the problems have escalated. We don’t blame Jen for seeking out a way to protect herself, even if it was done in a jest.
While Jen Jen was trying to find the humor in her dark situation, women quickly chimed in with lifesaving advice.
“You can go to the police station and get an emergency restraining order that is in effect until the courts are open!” one wrote.
“Call dispatch and ask for extra patrol to have in the area more until you can get another ppo, and if he shows up immediately call 911 and make sure your doors are locked.”
“As someone who just delt with this, try to get away to somewhere he wouldn’t think you would go for a few days until you can get a lawyer.”
Jen was incredibly active in her responses, showing that she is clearly (and unfortunately) a seasoned stalking victim.
She wrote about finding a lawyer to help her close the legal loopholes left in her first restraining order, and shared that in her state, the only way to renew an order was by letting it expire first – unless the perp has actively murdered someone close to the victim. She always moved the conversation to her DMs, encouraging followers to message her because people “stalk her page,” and she didn’t know if their conversation could get back to him.
Another user told her that “In some places even if the restraining order is up they can still be charged for going against it for I believe up to a week.” Jen replied darkly, “I don’t think they care until someone dies tbh. Its been rough out here.”
It’s hard to know exactly who is threatening the young lady, but the majority of stalking cases emanate from current or former partners. Of this majority, 1/3 of the victims report sexual assault at the hands of the same partner who stalked them. Jen Jen admitted to deleting the saga from her socials, saying that it was “so traumatic watching myself constantly go through it.”
Jen noted that her stalker already had a warrant out for his arrest, so hopefully her ordeal will be over soon. She has yet to update her story, but we’re hopeful she’s safe and has a much more permanent restraining order against her stalker.