It should be legal to stalk someone

Cons asks me to imagine how unpleasant it would be if I had a child who received threats online, and then was unable to receive help from the police as a result of stalking not being a crime. Or in other words; imagine if I was a very bad parent. "Three-quarters of children aged between 10 and 12 have social media accounts despite being below the age limit, a survey has found" [1] "The study found that although 59 per cent of children are social networking by 10 years old, just 32 per cent of parents feel 'very confident' about helping them stay safe online. The poll found 21 per cent of children had posted negative comments, starting from an average age of 11, and 26 per cent had 'hijacked' another person's account and posted without permission. Some 43 per cent had messaged strangers, starting from an average age of 12.... only 63 per cent of parents check their child's internet activity at least once a week" [2] Cyber stalking is when a person is followed or pursued online, their privacy and every move is watched. If children are old enough to use social network sites i.e. 13, then they should know to only communicate with people they know, and not strangers, they should also know how to create a secure password, and know the importance of keeping it secret, and tell someone if they have a bad experience etc. The fact stalking is illegal gives parents a false sense of security regarding the internet, legalizing stalking would make parents take more responsibility. People choose to let stalking affect them because stalking is illegal. Many will spend days or longer collecting evidence when they should press the 'block' button and get on with their life. Cons says that stalking forces victims to leave their homes, and switch workplaces to escape their stalkers. I agree that it can cause debilitating psychological trauma towards its victims however what might have a negative impact on someone might not to another, everybody is different. Stalking laws create victims. 11.5% of reports of stalking are false [3]. Saying "this is true for any law" is missing the point. 11.5% is a very high percentage, and Innocent people should not be punished, the accused may never recover from the damage to their reputation. They can lose their job, friends, family, spend time in jail etc. "Brian Philbrick, who spent more than a month in jail after being falsely accused of stalking a Willington teacher, had all pending charges against him dropped Thursday. In May 1996, the teacher, Kathy Gerardi, told police that Philbrick, who had previously been convicted of stalking her, was sending threatening letters again. He was arrested, but in the end, it turned out Gerardi had sent herself the letters in order to put Philbrick back in prison." [4] Celebrities stand a much greater chance of being stalked. Social media makes it easy to "follow" someone. And a lot of people tell everyone everything they are doing e.g. having a shower. Unwanted attention can be expected. For that reason it should be legal to stalk. My opponent attempts to make my argument appear illogical however I am not talking about making every crime legal. It is illogical to think that if we make stalking legal we must make murder legal too. They are two separate things, no-one can prevent someone murdering them or making them a slave but they can do take simple steps to stop or prevent stalking like being careful what they wear, what details they give out and to whom etc. You say some stalkers stalk because of mental disorders such as antisocial, borderline, or narcissistic personality disorder. People who have a mental illness or who refuse to believe their relationship is over shouldn't be punished, they should be helped. Making stalking illegal is not in the interest of anyone. Of course authorities would cease to investigate cases of stalking and not report them, but that doesn't mean less mentally ill people would receive help. Laws against stalking creates hatred towards stalkers, if this was gone more people would be helped. sources: [1] http://www.telegraph.co.uk... [2] http://www.dailymail.co.uk... [3] https://www.ncjrs.gov... [4] http://articles.courant.com...