Victim Resources

It is against the law in the State of Montana to cause bodily harm to a partner or family member. It is even unlawful to cause reasonable apprehension of bodily harm. What this means is if you are being hit, and /or being threatened with harm, your partner is breaking the law! Remember: no matter who you are, no matter what you do or don’t do, you never deserve to be physically or mentally abused.

Stalking

Stalking is a series of actions that make you feel afraid or in danger. Stalking is serious, often violent, and can escalate over time. A stalker can be someone you know well or not at all. Most have dated or been involved with the people they stalk. Most stalking cases involve men stalking women, but men do stalk men, women do stalk women, and women do stalk men. Stalking is a crime. You are not to blame for a stalker’s behavior.

Order of Protection

An order of protection is a court order, signed by a judge, which prohibits the person who has harmed you or threatened to harm you, from having further contact with you. There is no requirement that the abuse be reported to law enforcement. There is no filing fee for orders of protection. You can petition for an order of protection if the person abusing you, or threatening to abuse you, is a family member, intimate partner, or former intimate partner. There is no relationship requirement for victims of sexual assault, incest, or stalking.

Things you can do to Increase Your Safety

• If you are in immediate danger, call 911.
• Trust your instincts. Don’t downplay the danger. If you feel you are unsafe, you probably are.
• Take threats seriously. Danger generally is higher when the stalker talks about suicide or murder, or when a victim tries to leave or end the relationship.
• Contact a crisis hotline, Victim Witness Advocate, or a domestic violence or rape crisis program. They can help you devise a safety plan, give you information about local laws, refer you to other services, and weigh options such as seeking a protection order.
• Develop a safety plan, including things like changing your routine, arranging a place to stay, and having a friend or relative go places with you. Also, decide in advance what to do if the stalker shows up at your home, work, school, or somewhere else. Tell people how they can help you.
• Don’t communicate with the stalker or respond to attempts to contact you.
• Keep evidence of the stalking. When the stalker follows you or contacts you, write down the time, date, and place. Keep e mails, phone messages, letters, or notes.
• Photograph anything of yours the stalker damages and any injuries the stalker causes.
• Ask witnesses to write down what they saw.
• Contact the police. Every state has stalking laws.
• The stalker may also have broken other laws by doing things like assaulting you or stealing or destroying your property.
• Consider getting a court order that tells the stalker to stay away from you.
• Tell family, friends, roommates, and coworkers about the stalking and seek their support. Tell security staff at your job or school. Ask them to help watch out for your safety.

Your computer tracks the pages you visit including this one:

Here’s how to erase it:

• If you are using Internet Explorer: Click the Tools button, point to Safety, and then click Delete browsing history.
• If you’re using Firefox: Click the menu button (three little bars all the way to the right of the address bar), choose History, and then Clear Recent History.
• If you’re using Chrome: In the top right, click the Menu. Click More tools, Clear browsing data. In the dialog that appears, select the checkboxes for the types of information that you want to remove. Use the menu at the top to select the amount of data you want to delete. Click Clear browsing data.
• If your browser history may be accessed by your abuser, the safest way to access this information is to use a library computer or one belonging to a friend