In my nearly 47 years in law enforcement, I have seen numerous women who were pursued by a jealous suitor, an ex-husband or an unknown stalker. Those men would make threats to kill these women and, in some cases, eventually did murder them. Very few homicides involving women were actual random killings; many had been victims of a stalker. In retrospect, the pattern is almost always clear. The clues predicting the homicide were often there in police reports involving domestic violence or stalking cases. Unfortunately, the clues only came to light after the fact. 

I was working the graveyard shift and was summoned to the station by my sergeant. He had received a call from a sheriff’s department in Arizona asking us to make a death notification. I was given all the information regarding this notification and, to my shock, it was the younger sister of two of my friends from the neighborhood where I grew up. She had tragically been killed by a jealous boyfriend after they broke up. Apparently, she had been stalked by this man and had made several reports to the police asking for help. Back then, domestic violence restraining orders and victim advocates were not that prevalent yet in this rural community.

I learned that in this case there were several indicators leading to the murder of my friend. These included both verbal and physical abuse along with stalking. Her ex-boyfriend was physically abusive and hurt her more than once. They had been living together, and she moved out one day when he was at work. He tracked her down and tried to reconcile, but she was through with him. He started stalking her and leaving flowers and notes on her car. He would approach her and tell her he could not live without her and was going to commit suicide if they didn’t get back together. One night he was waiting by her apartment and confronted her. He shot her with a shotgun and then turned the gun on himself.

This was a very difficult and emotional notification to make. I woke up her mother at 3 a.m. She still lived in the same home I had visited countless times as a teenager. She immediately recognized me and right away could tell something was wrong. I had her sit down, and I sat beside her on the couch. She broke down in tears, and I tried to console her. She knew that her daughter was having trouble with her boyfriend but never imagined it would come to this. I stayed with her while she called other family members. She gave me a big hug before I left with tears in my eyes. As I stood on the front porch and tried to make sense of this tragedy, memories came to mind of hanging out there with her older brothers. From that day on, I was always on high alert when dealing with domestic violence cases, making sure I did all I could to protect the victims and prevent cases like this from happening. 

Many years later, as the commander of the Albuquerque Police Department Violent Crimes Division, I had my Domestic Violence Unit try a new approach to improve victim safety. The lieutenant in that unit helped develop a new ideology that assumed responsibility to identify offenders who are progressing toward potential high-lethality events. The media did a story about our “stalk the stalkers” program, and it went viral. My lieutenant, Paul Szych, created a dynamic stalking intervention program. In addition to this new approach, a methodology was created to document and quantify the details of every individual case to create a threat assessment that can predict and prevent potential tragedies. This article will provide an overview of Syzch’s program and offer insights into how to
implement it. 

High-lethality offender progression examples

The most common of these are where the offender has displayed a history of high-lethality behavior as an adult. The offender’s history shows a willingness to use violence freely and seems to lack acceptable social restraints. He has committed violent crimes such as aggravated assault or battery with a deadly weapon, kidnapping, strangulation, sexual assault or stalking. The threat assessment for an offender who has committed one or more of these acts would indicate a high threat and probability of lethality.

Some common indicators or precursors leading an offender to dismiss conduct inhibitors include the following:

• If the high-lethality offender is currently threatening to kill, kidnap, sexually assault, strangle, stalk or seriously harm an ex or current intimate partner (and, possibly, to kill himself), and that behavior causes the victim an imminent fear of serious harm or death
• Loss or threatened loss of employment, parental rights, status in the community, access to the victim, marriage (e.g., with a divorce becoming final), relationships, income or housing
• The death of a family member, being served with an order of protection, or any single or cumulative substantial loss of the offender’s standard pattern of conduct that they view as essential to hope and life

When the high-lethality offender experiences the removal of conduct inhibitors, especially when the removal of inhibitors occurs rapidly or in groups, a high-lethality window may exist. The added accelerant of a high-lethality window of opportunity can include mental instability, alcohol or substance abuse, important or relevant upcoming dates or anniversaries, pending court hearings or any other situation that may cause an offender to act on their high-lethality threats.

Dynamic stalking intervention

There is nothing easy or convenient about predicting and preventing high-lethality behavior or events. However, there is a system that can be used to intervene in these cases.

The first step is to establish contact with the victim and to begin intelligence-gathering. A full understanding of the history behind the issues should be obtained during this preliminary interview.

The next step is to implement a safety plan to protect the victim. Since the police can’t always be with the victim, this is a critical component. The full implementation of a well-thought-out safety plan can greatly assist the police with the time necessary to get in front of the lethality
power curve.

An order of protection should be sought to provide clarity to all involved and, in most jurisdictions, will allow for an immediate arrest if the offender violates the order. Be aware that the order of protection can result in the loss of a conduct inhibitor and accelerate the offender’s behavior. Be prepared to mitigate any unintended consequences.

All audio and video evidence should be collected involving the stalking case. Take full advantage to start the evidentiary foundation of your case. This can establish probable cause for an arrest and the eventual beyond-a-reasonable-doubt threshold necessary for conviction.

Provide the victim with all available resources to assist them during this challenging time. The victim is likely to need legal assistance, counseling, housing and possible child care. The resources available in your jurisdiction will dictate the services you can offer the victim.

Thoroughly investigate the offender’s past criminal history. This can go back decades and may include multiple victims in different cities or states. All incident reports should be examined for additional past lethality indicators. An offender’s past criminal conduct is crucial as it relates to lethality. Conduct a full threat assessment and apply all information on the offender’s past conduct to quantify the overall level of poatential lethality. A threat assessment report has greater impact than a stack of police reports. This will assist with the prosecution of the case in court.

Coordinate intelligence-gathering to establish a surveillance or tactical arrest plan. Set up surveillance on both the offender and victim during these operations. In the event that you lose sight of the offender, the victim is still in your sight and protected should the offender attempt to approach this location. GPS tracking devices can add a layer of extra protection in case you get “burned.” Some jurisdictions may require a search warrant to lawfully place these devices on an offender’s vehicle. This technology assists with resources and acts as a force multiplier.

Mitigating these threats is the primary goal of this system. While incarceration offers the best protection to the victims, not all cases end in arrest. Have a backup plan to assist with an eventual offender release. Work closely with your district attorneys, along with probation and parole. Push hard for strict conditions of release, such as ankle monitors. Prepare the victim with a new safety plan should the offender be released.

These proactive measures can mitigate and help prevent domestic violence, stalking and potential killing events. Taking the best practice approach to addressing interpersonal violence will go a long way to prevent potential tragedies. Over an eight-year period, the Albuquerque Police Domestic Violence Unit worked 1,850 cases with no victims lost. The ideology described in this article is an effective, proven platform to increase victim safety.