MP backs stalking victim's campaign for law change

Leigh MP James Grundy has written to the Home Secretary to urge her to implement Nikita’s Law, a proposal that will make stalking a standalone offence in law.

Earlier this year, Mr Grundy met with Nikita Rogers, the Leigh resident the law is named after, who had been the victim of a horrendous stalking ordeal carried out by a stranger.

In early 2019, Miss Rogers noticed that she was being followed by the man, which later progressed to herself and her children being subject to verbal abuse, physical violence and even death threats.

After reporting these incidents on multiple occasions to the police, the individual was finally arrested and charged under harassment law.

However due to gaps in the current legislation, the stalking was able to continue as the perpetrator was released on bail with no means of preventing further contact.

The individual was also kept in a day release mental health facility just half a mile from his victim’s home, and was able to leave the facility unsupervised. This resulted in further attempts to contact Miss Rogers and place her family at extreme risk.

Nikita’s Law calls for stalking to become a standalone offence and close the legal gaps that leave victims of stalking immensely vulnerable.

A standalone stalking law has already been successfully passed into law in Scotland and Miss Rogers is continuing the national campaign for this to be made into law across the rest of the United Kingdom, which Mr Grundy has now backed.

Speaking about his letter to the Home Secretary, Mr Grundy said: “When I met with Miss Rogers earlier this year, I was shocked and appalled to learn of her horrendous ordeal and the failures of the law that allowed her and her children to continue to be stalked.

“Her fight to change the law to make stalking a standalone offence and protect victims of stalking across the country for years to come is inspirational and upon hearing of her case, I wanted to take action.

“This is why I have written to the Home Secretary, to urge the Government to introduce Nikita’s Law and ensure that situations like Miss Rogers’ can never happen again.”

Talking about her experience, Miss Rogers said: “I endured months of torture, ranging from verbal abuse, threats of physical violence, rape, a threat to kidnap my little daughter and feed her to the sharks, gestures of my throat being cut, being followed, watched and having bottles being thrown at me and my young children when I ventured out of my house.

"At one point, I had to cover my son to protect him from the shards of glass, yet even after he was sectioned, I’d come face to face with him in my local shop.

“I want to make sure the gaps in the law are fixed to ensure victims of stalking are fully protected from the terrible suffering it causes and I’m pleased that James Grundy MP is helping me in my fight for action.”

A message from the Editorial Director, Gillian Parkinson:

Thank you for reading this story on our website.

But I also have an urgent plea to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality local news on this free-to-read site and in print, please purchase a copy of our newspaper as well.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on our town centres and many of our valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you buying a copy when you pop out for your essential shop or subscribing for delivery.

Our journalists are highly trained by the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards anywhere in the world. Our content is universally trusted - as all independent research proves.

As Baroness Barran said in a House of Lords debate this week on the importance of journalists: "Not only are they a trusted source of facts, but they will have a role to play in rallying communities and getting the message across about how we can keep ourselves and our families safe, and protect our NHS. Undoubtedly, they have a critical role."

But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis. In return we will continue to forensically cover the local news - not only the impact of the virus but all the positive and uplifting news happening in these dark days.

We thank all our readers and advertisers for their understanding and support - and we wish YOU all the best in the coming weeks. Keep safe, and follow the Government advice. Thank you.

HOW TO SUBSCRIBE:

You can subscribe for delivery by contacting us at [email protected] or calling us on 0330 4033004 for details of a participating newsagent near you.