Being verbally and physically abused is a difficult affliction to tolerate. Being stalked and not knowing when your stalker just might show up is even worse. It causes fear and takes a mental toll on the survivor. For Cody, it was just that.
Cody met Delilah in high school, but their romantic affairs did not take off until they reunited 23 years later, after Delilah divorced her first husband. As their relationship blossomed, so did Delilah’s true colors.
“She would verbally and emotionally abuse me by trying to scare me into things. It was straight manipulation,” Cody said. “She didn’t display these behaviors at first, but then she slowly started showing this other side of her.”
He reached a point where he was used to having his life threatened by her.
“She was always aggressive. She would punch me in the face in front of my friends, jump on my back, choke me and spit in my face. I had to walk on eggshells around her because I never knew what was going to happen.”
To escape from her, Cody asked to transfer locations at his place of employment, and she found him. Delilah called the original location Cody where he was employed, and spoke with the manager, who she convinced to tell her which location he moved to. She took extreme stalking measures to go to every store within a 60-mile range to finally find him again. He couldn’t escape her.
“She tried to control me and everyone around me like a chess piece. I tried to understand her, but I couldn’t.”
He could not take the abuse anymore and feared she might show up anywhere he went, so he called Lone Star Legal Aid for legal guidance. An attorney in our Crime Victim Unit was assigned to his case, and gave him safety planning advice that would prevent further contact and communication, as well as keeping his whereabouts private.
“I was advised to block her from all platforms, change my number, and change all passwords on my social media and email accounts. I will admit it has been helpful in keeping me safe from her.”
* Names were changed to protect the identity of the individual(s)
