565.225. Stalking, first degree, penalty.
It’s a crime to threaten or repeatedly follow someone in a way that causes fear or distress.
This law makes it illegal to stalk someone in a serious way—especially if threats are made, an order of protection is violated, or the victim is vulnerable like a child or law enforcement family member.
1. In this law, “disturbs” means repeated actions with no good reason that would scare, upset, or intimidate a reasonable person.
2. A person commits first-degree stalking if they repeatedly disturb or follow someone on purpose and:
- (1) Make threats that would make the victim fear for their safety, their family’s, or their animals’;
- (2) Break an order of protection during their actions and knew about the order;
- (3) Violate a court condition like probation or bail during the stalking behavior;
- (4) Target a victim who is 17 or younger, while the stalker is 21 or older;
- (5) Were previously found guilty of a crime against the same victim (like domestic assault); or
- (6) Try to find the address of someone in the Missouri address confidentiality program.
3. Police can arrest someone without a warrant if they have probable cause to believe this law was broken.
4. This law does not apply to lawful investigations by law enforcement.
5. First-degree stalking is a class E felony, but it becomes a class D felony if:
- The person has been convicted of stalking before (in Missouri or another state); or
- The victim is a law enforcement officer or close family of one and was intentionally targeted.
Contact us online or call (314) 900-HELP to talk with a Missouri criminal defense lawyer.
