FOI Stalking Offences (0706-2024/25)

Request
Q1.  Could you please confirm if spying on a person, openly and covertly watching & filming them, storing such images, following them on foot or in a car, loitering in their vicinity until they go back into their home, stealing mail from their letterbox, making false reports about them to third parties, boasting to the police and others of having made such reports, deliberately causing criminal damage to that person's property, is stalking.

Q2. Could you please confirm if a person reports they are the victim of the offences above, a pattern of fixated, obsessive, unwanted and repeated offences, that these reports will be recorded as stalking.

Q3. Could you please confirm if all the above offences are committed by a neighbour against another neighbour in the same block that this is stalking.

Q4. Could you please confirm at what point the victim will be referred to the Stalking Support Team.

Extent of Searches to Locate Information
Following receipt of your request searches were conducted within North Yorkshire Police to locate relevant information. 

Decision
I wish to advise you that your request does not meet the criteria for a valid FOI request.

In order for a request to be valid under Section 8(1)(c) of the Freedom of Information Act, the request must ‘clearly describe the information being sought’, and refer to ‘records capable of recovery in any form’. This can be ‘recorded information held in written records, typed, handwritten, emails etc’. The request in its current form asks for information which would require an opinion or judgement, and not that of recorded information held by North Yorkshire Police.

However, in accordance with my duty to advise and assist, under Section 16 of the Act, I can refer you to the following links available on our website: Stalking or Harassment | The Crown Prosecution Service / Protection from Harassment Act 1997.