This paper analyzes the occurrence of harassment and intimidation through various forms of technology for victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) in St. Louis City, specifically as it relates to victim safety planning. In order to better understand this problem, I monitored a sample of 150 victims of IPV (through a Victim Services case database) and identified any instances of harassment or intimidation, noting the medium through which the IPV perpetuation took place (i.e. text, call, email, social media, etc.). The results showed that the majority of reported instances took place over text message or phone call, compared to other technological mediums. It was also recorded that there was a higher incidence of harassment through technology for victims of felony cases, compared to victims in misdemeanor IPV cases. Conversely, the data indicates that there is little difference in incidence when comparing cases with confined versus unconfined defendants. These findings may suggest that due to high incidence of IPV perpetuation, increased attention to safety planning methods may be necessary in cases involving felonies. Furthermore, the study emphasizes the need for additional investigation into the gaps in service for this population as a whole in order to better understand blind spots surrounding technological perpetuation of IPV.

Anna Cawley would like to thank their faculty sponsor Dr. Shannon Cooper-Sadlo for their support of this project.