Tailgating is harassment under New Jersey Domestic Violence Law

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In the recent unpublished opinion in Fisher v. Libro, the appellate division upheld the entry of a Final Restraining Order (FRO) against the ex-husband for tailgating his former wife on several occasions.   The trial judge found that this constituted harassment under the New Jersey Prevention of Domestic Violence Act, N.J.S.A. 2C:25-17 to –35.

Harassment occurs when someone:

a. Makes, or causes to be made, a communication or communications anonymously or at extremely inconvenient hours, or in offensively coarse language, or any other manner likely to cause annoyance or alarm;

b. Subjects another to striking, kicking, shoving, or other offensive touching, or threatens to do so; or

c. Engages in any other course of alarming conduct or of repeatedly committed acts with purpose to alarm or seriously annoy such other person.

N.J.S.A. 2C:33-4.  For there to be harassment constituting domestic violence there must be a "purpose to harass" by "'a course of alarming conduct' or repeated acts intended to alarm or seriously annoy another." Corrente v. Corrente, 281 N.J. Super 243, 249 (App. Div. 1995) (quoting Grant v. Wright, 222 N.J. Super. 191, 196 (App. Div.), certif. denied, 111 N.J. 562 (1988)).

In Fisher, the trial judge found that the repeated tailgating was done with “an explicit purpose to alarm or annoy.”  The appellate division affirmed the entry of a Final Restraining Order.