2014 Atlantic Journalism Awards Finalists
Attachments
| Slug/Label | Stalker |
|---|---|
| Date Aired or Published | October 2, 2014 |
| Media outlet where first aired or published: | The Coast weekly newspaper |
| Name of Program: | n/a |
| If co-produced, list partner: | n/a |
| Location: | Halifax |
| List awards, grants: | n/a |
| Running time (TV/Radio): | |
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Short explanation of the story and how it developed: The Rehtaeh Parsons tragedy was supposed to change things in Nova Scotia. Parsons was the 17-year-old who was driven to suicide by online bullying, after a picture of her being sexually assaulted at a party was circulated among her classmates. Just three weeks after her death in 2013, Nova Scotia introduced cyberbullying legislation to give officials tools and a mandate so that another victim wouldn’t be ignored the way Parsons was. But we found a woman whose story reveals that far-too-little has changed in the province. Nicole broke up with her boyfriend, Adam, after their relationship in Halifax had become abusive. But after the break-up, he parked his car in front of her house and wouldn’t leave. She went to the police for help, and was told it would be hard to get a restraining order because Adam is from Florida. They got back together briefly, then broke up again and he returned to the States. Nicole thought he was out of her life, but as our feature “The always-on stalker” reveals, online Adam hadn't left her behind. And until our story was published, the police continued to ignore her plight. Online, Adam participated in “revenge porn” against Nicole and her friend Kim, posting nude photos of them with their real names. He harassed a business where Kim used to work. Most disturbingly, he lured a man into going to Nicole’s house to sexually assault her, although when the man arrived at her door in the middle of the night, luckily he had second thoughts. Yet even when Nicole went to the police with evidence of what was happening online—and with the new cyberbullying laws freshly on the books—they didn’t help her. Reporting this story meant first gaining the trust of Nicole and Kim, two women who felt threatened and alone, and didn’t want to tell their story to someone else who was going to ignore them. Then came journalistic investigation, online and off. We helped Nicole request her police file through freedom of information, we visited some very disturbing websites to confirm the harassment and photos existed, we interviewed police in both Halifax and Florida to confirm and question the treatment Nicole and Kim had received. The story was published in October, and made an impact immediately. Extensively shared on social media, it became a trending topic on Twitter and was linked to across the U.S. and Canada. As a result of the story, Halifax olice issued a full public apology about their handling of the case, and subsequently passed the case to detectives in Florida, who are actively working it. Nicole and Kim’s story has come up twice in the Nova Scotia legislature, emphasizing a need for better mental health care and police training. Halifax police conducted a review of the case and announced structural changes, including training for all officers on how to receive sex crime complaints. And Nicole and Kim feel a little less alone. |
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Resources of the newsroom (money and time) available to complete the story: Reporter Hilary Beaumont is a full-time freelance writer based in Halifax, balancing time between all her ongoing assignments. The Coast didn't support her reporting financially beyond the standard freelance rate paid on publication of the story. |
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