[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 61 (Wednesday, May 5, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H2626-H2627]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             CYBERSTALKING

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Washington (Mr. McDermott) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, America now knows the name of a woman who 
lives in my congressional district in Seattle. But she did not seek 
fame and would prefer anonymity.
  Her name is Joelle Ligon. I rise to speak about her plight, her 
courage and the need for this Congress to act. Joelle deserves to live 
her life without fear, as everybody deserves. Unfortunately, Joelle's 
life was turned into a nightmare because of cyberstalking.

                              {time}  1930

  Today she is both a victim and an advocate, and she was invited to 
share her story the other day on ``Good Morning America.'' It was not 
easy for Joelle, but she knew it was important to warn America about 
the dangers lurking online. Joelle was 15 when she met and dated an 18-
year-old young man in high school. Nothing unusual about that. 
Eventually Joelle severed

[[Page H2627]]

the relationship and moved on with her life. She married and began a 
career. A few years later, Joelle received an e-mail one day. It was 
supposedly sent from a woman she did not know, but whoever sent it knew 
her. Then a second e-mail came with more personal details that no 
stranger could possibly know. Joelle began to suspect that the woman 
was really a man. By the third e-mail, Joelle was sure the e-mails were 
coming from her former high school boyfriend. She wrote back, naming 
him, and telling him to stop. Things went from bad to bizarre. The e-
mails got much worse. They began to include pornography and threats 
like this: ``Not only is it bad karma to have enemies, I'm a bad enemy 
to have.''
  Joelle was terrified. Then came phone calls in the middle of the 
night. Her phone number had been posted online by someone urging men to 
call her for sex. Joelle went to the local police, but they concluded 
there was nothing they could do because no law had been broken. Joelle 
and her husband moved to Seattle, but within months the nightmare came 
back. Joelle started receiving calls at work from men who had seen her 
number posted online in sex chat rooms. She again went to the local 
police and to the FBI, but nothing was done. Finally, her coworkers and 
supervisors received an e-mail that accused her of falsifying her 
employment credentials and of sexual misconduct. The city of Seattle's 
computer security officer, Kirk Bailey, became the white knight. He got 
people involved, but progress was painfully slow because no laws 
specifically address cyberstalking. Eventually an assistant U.S. 
Attorney got involved, but finding a law to deal with a 21st century 
crime has been tough.
  A break in the case came when the ex used her phone number in a chat 
room. Authorities acted, using title 47 of the Telecommunications Act 
for the first time in a case like this. The ex-boyfriend has been 
charged, but it has taken years and a courageous woman willing to see 
it through.
  And it is not over yet. Joelle and millions of other Americans need 
our help. By some estimates, one out of every 12 women in America is 
stalked online. The problem extends to men as well. Some States, 
including Washington, have acted to toughen the laws, but it is time to 
recognize that cyberstalking is a national problem. We are using a 20th 
century law to fight 21st century crime. That has to change. Cyberspace 
has no State borders. Cyberpredators can reach across State lines to 
terrorize their victims wherever they live and work. Americans like 
Joelle need the protection that only the Federal Government can 
provide. We need to modernize our laws to make sure they protect Joelle 
and every American.
  Cyberspace has opened doors we are just beginning to understand. This 
one, we already know. Everyone has the right to feel safe and be safe. 
Anything less is wrong and should be illegal with severe penalties. The 
first step is awareness. I am preparing a letter to circulate to my 
colleagues that will include newspaper accounts from Seattle about 
Joelle. We are going to work with the appropriate Members and 
committees in the House as soon as possible to tackle cyberstalking 
head-on. We will do what we need to do to clarify and strengthen our 
laws.
  I urge both Republicans and Democrats to join me in protecting 
Joelle, to join me in protecting every American. Let the predators know 
that they are the only ones who should not feel safe today.
  Joelle, you are not alone. Help is coming.

                          ____________________