Law Student Tory Shafer Examines Intersection of Stalking and Threats in Recent Research
Shafer’s article, “Does a Stalker Need to Threaten Their Victim? In Counterman v. Colorado, the Supreme Court Shrugs” was published in the fall 2024 issue of the Criminal Law Bulletin, a peer-reviewed law review based in Arizona State University.
In the article, Shafer proposes a framework for courts to determine whether a defendant should be prosecuted for a threat or for stalking.
“This framework is necessary because the Supreme Court decided Counterman v. Colorado, an online stalking case, on true-threat grounds,” Shafer explained. “Confusing these issues threatens online stalking statutes across the nation and gives little guidance to the Colorado court on remand. Online stalking and threats are separate bodies of law and should be analyzed differently. My proposal remains faithful to the Court in Counterman while protecting stalking and threat victims.”
Shafer came across the Counterman v. Colorado case while he was an intern at a prosecutor’s office in Queens, New York, and began researching threat law. He used the topic for his student writing requirement for law review during his second year of law school.
If he were to break down the article, Shafer said there are three takeaways for readers.
“The constitutionality of laws punishing people for causing emotional distress via online communication is unclear; that lack of clarity causes courts – like the Supreme Court in Counterman – to issue decisions that mismatch to the facts of the case; and what the Colorado court does on remand may have vast implications for stalking prosecutions across America.”
At the Knudson School of Law, Shafer is president of the Christian Legal Society, the lead articles editor for the South Dakota Law Review, a research assistant for Professor Patrick Garry, J.D., and the social media chair for the USD Chapter of the Federalist Society.
Upon graduation, Shafer will clerk for Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court Jonathan Papik for one year, then will start as an associate at McGrath North Mullin & Kratz in Omaha, Nebraska.
“My long-term career goals include joining the fight against human trafficking,” said Shafer. “Aside from that eventual goal, and perhaps as a part of it, I hope to work in a state solicitor general’s office.
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