Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Domestic Violence

As it relates to stalking in Florida, section 784.048(1)(a) of the Florida Statutes defines the term "harass" as "to engage in a course of conduct directed at a specific person which causes substantial emotional distress to that person and serves no legitimate purpose." What is considered substantial emotional distress? This was an issue in the case Potts v. Lewis, 2D22-1678 (Fla. 2d DCA October 25, 2023).

The parties in this case were acquaintances at church. A stalking injunction was filed after the alleged victim claimed the alleged stalker harassed her by threatening to report her to law enforcement and licensing authorities for allegedly acting as a general contractor without a license. He did report her eventually. The alleged stalker is also alleged to have sent text messages to mutual friends and confronted the alleged victim at church in the presence of their mutual friends. The alleged stalker was reported to be “relentless in his quest to get [the alleged victim] to ‘repent’”. The trial court entered a permanent injunction and the alleged stalker appealed. The appellate court reversed, holding “While we in no way condone [the alleged stalker’s] behavior, [the alleged victim’s] evidence is not sufficient to establish that it would have caused a reasonable person substantial emotional distress.”

The court noted the standard for substantial emotional distress: “Although the statute frames the issue of substantial emotional distress in terms of what a petitioner experiences, courts apply an objective standard to determine if an incident causes substantial emotional distress, not a subjective standard. See Bouters v. State, 659 So. 2d 235, 238 (Fla. 1995) (holding that the statute requires that the alleged conduct must cause substantial emotional distress in a reasonable person). As this court has explained ‘[s]ubstantial emotional distress 'is greater than ordinary distress,' and . . . 'a reasonable person does not suffer substantial emotional distress easily.' Kaye v. Wilson, 363 So. 3d 1155, 1159 (Fla. 2d DCA 2023) (quoting Baruti v. Vingle, 343 So. 3d 150, 151 (Fla. 5th DCA 2022)). Annoyance, frustration, or embarrassment will not suffice.”

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