I Am a Stalker is a new true crime series, released on Netflix on 28th October 2022. Produced by Ned Parker and Danny Tipping under the banner of Transistor Films. The series is a co-production between Netflix and UK channel Crime + Investigation, with the miniseries featuring in-depth interviews with eight convicted individuals.
There are 8 episodes in total with a runtime of about 45 minutes and each episode deep dives into the minds of America’s most notorious stalkers. The has already been premiered in the UK on 18th October and made available globally now on the streaming platform.
-I Am A Stalker Review Does Not Contain Any Spoiler-
Roughly 1.4 million people are stalked every year in the U.S. alone. The results of stalking range from the annoying (persistently receiving loads of emails or letters) to the intrusive (being secretly watched or followed) to the most severe (kidnapping and/or murder). From the producers of I AM A KILLER, comes the latest spine-chilling series that profiles the most notorious stalkers currently behind bars as they tell us in their own chilling words, how love turned into a deadly obsession.
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Each episode deals with a unique case of stalking and the ways they terrorised their victims. The episodes are titled – Pattern of Behavior, One Last Chance, A Family Stalked, Close to Death, Imminent Fear, Extreme Best Friends, Red Flags and Obsessive Tendencies. In every episode, we meet convicts who tell us about themselves, their background and what made them commit the crime that led them to serve time in prison.
The inmates featured in the documentary series are Daniel Thompson, John Anderson, Ruben Jaramillo, Terry Morrison, Jaclyn Feagin, James Corpus, David Mcgee and Deketrice Jackson. Among them, some are serving life sentences while a few are out on parole and some are waiting for their parole in the meantime.
The series starts off with some statistics like 3 million incidents of stalking are reported in the US alone and only 7% of them are taken into custody and the majority of stalking cases go unreported. They also give us a brief definition of stalking as you would see later in the episodes that many of these criminals didn’t even realise they were stalking or don’t even know what could be considered under it.
It is pursuing or following someone persistently or threateningly and making unwanted contact over a longer period of time. Most of the felons have similar types of stories, coming from a broken family or feeling outcasted as a child, never having any friends. Then they grow up and find someone attractive, who feels the same for them, then things go rough, controlling and obsessive and when they cut ties – all hell breaks loose.
Almost all were men, except for two women, out of which Jaclyn needed a better guardian and Deketrice definitely needs serious professional help rather than seeking god. It was also interesting to see that the men were very violent – destroying, harming and even stabbing people, while the women felons were somewhat strategic and trying to get their way by manipulation.
But in no way any of them are less guilty, regardless of gender. However, after serving 5-10 years in prison, almost none of them seem to have genuine remorse for what they have done or an understanding of what was wrong. I also fear that many of these convicts would do something similar again if let out.
Summing Up: I Am A Stalker
This documentary series is an intriguing watch, as we get a bit of perspective into the mind of these people and what made them do these horrible things. They might have been punished for their crimes, but the victims still seem terrified and anxious because of what happened. The majority of them consider stalking, such a low level of crime and like one said, they would rather be labelled as murderers than a stalker.
But in reality, stalking is as extreme as other horrendous crimes, making their victims look out for their lives all the time and most of them still live in that anxious state of mind. The series is also a lesson to get out of a relationship as soon as you see something wrong and get to know everything about your partner before you welcome them into your life permanently.
I Am A Stalker is currently streaming on Netflix.
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