A few people have asked why I made a website featuring Luke Wenke’s court documents. I apologise for how long this article is, but this is a loaded topic, and it’s the most abridged explanation I could come up with.

 

Let’s get this question out of the way first:

 

Releasing these documents will make Luke Wenke mad. Why am I doing this if I’m afraid of him?

 

I’ve carried Wenke’s stalking and harassment like a shameful, dirty secret for years. I’ve been very vocal toward the court and law enforcement but have withdrawn from social media and live an extremely private life. And I’ll continue to live privately because Wenke has targeted my friends and ex-boyfriends in the past, and I don’t want to inadvertently put anyone in harm’s way. But I’m sick of being silent while Wenke runs me over (and over and over), and I don’t think I’m the only person who could be in danger if – or, rather, when – Wenke is released. I therefore think this information should be easily accessible.

 

I know that what I’m doing will have the inevitable effect of “stirring the pot.” It’s unavoidable. But it’s not my motive (I’m actually very worried about what he might do in retaliation for this when he’s released, but I’ve taken the plunge and made the site, and it took many hours, so I’m not deleting it just because I’m nervous. He’s been publicly disparaging me, unchecked, for years. I deserve a platform to share my side of the story.)

 

Wenke is plenty miserable on his own. It’d be pretty redundant to do something like this just to upset him, because he’ll find something to blow a gasket over either way. He’ll find something to have a problem with, and will torment people relentlessly, either way. This isn’t going to stop, so I might as well put the facts out there even if I’m doing so at the risk of his retaliation. He already obsesses over me 24/7 anyway. It only ever worsens anyway.

 

 

People have a right to know the information on this website.

 

The court documents are public record, and the material contained within raises valid safety concerns for society in general. Wenke travelled nearly halfway across the country to stalk someone who had begged him to leave them alone, and he drove 600-plus miles to show up unannounced at the home of his romantic obsession’s family, who had also begged him to leave them alone. He has violated state-issued orders of protection and federally imposed contact bans numerous times, including by sending letters to a victim while he was already locked up for violating that person’s order of protection.

 

People sometimes think I’m jokingly exaggerating when I say I no longer feel safe on the U.S. mainland. Sadly, I’m not.

 

I have to word myself cautiously here, but I truly do not think this situation will end well. Based on my own admittedly non-expert but very firsthand experience with the ongoing case and the many years I’ve known Wenke, I do not believe that he’ll ever voluntarily stop stalking and harassing people. Ever. Not now, and not in 20 years. To say he’s committed to his missions would be an understatement (and yes, “missions” is meant to be plural).

 

Ever since I’ve known Wenke, his behaviour has been on a consistent downward trajectory, and the decline accelerated noticeably starting five or six years ago. There has never been a time period when I thought ‘gee, he seems to be doing a little better this month’ or ‘he’s in better spirits’ or ‘he’s been acting less volatile lately.’ If the situation improves moving forward, then great. But it would defy logic for me to believe that it will, especially because he’s so dead set against cooperating with psychiatric treatment.

 

I’m not the only person who has suffered severe damage to their life due to Luke Wenke’s stalking and harassment.

 

I’ve stayed mostly quiet about Wenke’s stalking for years out of fear but also because a lot of people respond ignorantly, and there’s nothing like being kicked when you’re already down. So, I just learned quickly to shut up about it, save for the occasional cryptic Instagram post or venting privately to a trusted friend.

 

People often make cliché comments to someone who says they’re being harassed or stalked. Like “just ignore him, it’ll stop.” “He’ll get bored.” “Just block him.” “Don’t let it get to you.” Or the one I hate the most, “He’ll become someone else’s problem.”

 

(If you think I’d be okay with someone else going through this, then you truly do not understand the gravity of this hell-ish mess. Nobody deserves this. Nobody.)

 

This is literally the worst thing I’ve ever been through.

 

I’ve never second-guessed whether the situation is as bad as I perceive it to be, because I’ve never been through anything even remotely this awful. Wenke’s stalking is exponentially worse than anything else I’ve been through in my entire life. Even the deaths of loved ones were a cakewalk compared to this, and I truly mean that. Divorce? Cake. Housing insecurity? Cake. Losing a job? Cake, at least compared to being stalked.

 

Every person I’ve ever met, even my most despised ex, seems angelic and sane compared to what I’ve been dealing with for the last several years. And I know I’m not the only victim, which is one of the things that bothers me the most. This has to fucking stop.

 

A victim has every right to feel scared, upset, worried about their reputation (especially given Wenke’s penchant for trying to ruin people’s livelihoods), angry, violated, and plain old offended by their stalker’s words and actions. Ignoring and blocking a relentless stalker does not make them stop. If only it were that easy. If only. But Wenke has found many ways to circumvent any and all measures I’ve implemented to try getting my life back, even from behind bars. (And I will gladly discuss that if anyone is curious.)

 

And NOT that the explanation is owed, but I don’t get upset about Wenke’s vicious smear campaigns out of a fear that people will believe his claims or because I care what everyone thinks about me. It’s just downright terrifying that I’m on his mind so often, and in such a deeply hateful manner. He’s completely and utterly obsessed with me, and for no valid reason. And, again, I know I’m not the only one. This shit seriously needs to fucking stop. 

 

Luke Wenke will likely see freedom again, possibly in the near future.

 

I’m pretty sure Wenke has already sat in jail for longer than the possible prison term he was facing for violating his probation (or close to it), so I highly doubt he’ll go to prison. If the free world is the only alternative to a state hospital, then sure, I support the latter. Might as well give it a shot. But do I put any actual stock in it? Nope. Not even a little.

 

Even if the court institutionalises Wenke, I doubt he’ll go away for a significantly long time, especially because he’s been declared competent. And based on his letters to the court, his anger is only continuing to escalate, which makes the prospect of his freedom increasingly alarming. I firmly believe the worst is yet to come. 

 

Anti-stalking laws desperately need strengthening, so I get that the police have limited power until something pretty bad happens, especially in a bail reform state such as New York. I also get that the cops can’t preemptively lock Wenke up based on my prediction that something terrible will happen. I wouldn’t want them to do that, because I fully believe in things like probable cause, due process, and the presumption of innocence in court (yes, even for Wenke).

 

I was not originally a victim in Wenke’s federal cyberstalking case. I became one when I ended our friendship following his arrest, and the judge banned Wenke from contacting me. But he has continued to do so, including from jail, and the contact ban is loosely enforced at best.

 

Meanwhile, it took two fucking years for me to convince a non-federal authority to investigate my case. And while I believe the police are taking the situation seriously, now that they’ve read the federal documents, I fear that this won’t end until someone is put in life-threatening danger (or worse). And I think anyone could become a target, possibly even just by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. (This is my personal opinion based on experience; I’m not stating it as a fact.)

 

I do not believe mandated mental health treatment would lead to meaningful or long-term change.

 

I therefore appreciate, but do not fully trust, the system that is tasked with overseeing the next steps in Wenke’s case. I think Wenke might act a little better with treatment, or maybe he’ll become worn down enough by the never-ending nature of his case to go along with treatment for the sake of getting it over with. But I think even that scenario is highly unlikely. So far, he’s made it clear that the only way he’ll comply with treatment is if he’s forced. He’s especially resistant to medication.

 

If I end up being wrong, I’ll be happy about that. But people on forced medication often stop taking it when it’s no longer compulsory or strictly monitored. So, unless the people involved with Wenke’s case plan to oversee his daily activities with extreme scrutiny for the rest of his life, I’d bet money on treatment failing miserably sooner or later. And I hope I’m really, really far away when that day comes.

 

In a perfect world, people who are forced into treatment would all experience an “aha” moment and realise that it benefits them and is worth committing to. And that definitely happens. And sometimes, a person knows they need help and wants to get well but still struggles to stick to a programme, which is understandable. Life is hard. But I do not think this will be one of those cases.

 

Wenke flat-out does not want help, believes 100 percent that he does not need it, is not open-minded to it, and kicks and screams going into it like no one else I’ve ever met. He has already made a huge mockery of previous group therapy programmes that the judge required him to attend, and it made me sad knowing that some of the people there are probably working their asses off to improve their lives.  They didn’t deserve to have what’s supposed to be a healing environment polluted by someone who treats literally everyone around him like dog crap and then rambles to himself on Twitter about it for eight days afterward.

 

Not everyone can be saved, and some people are born evil.

 

The biggest lesson this former friendship taught me is that sometimes, it’s okay to give up on someone, especially if you’re being mistreated. And I think it’d be both naïve and insane to harbour high hopes that this extremely out-of-control behaviour will resolve with therapy and court-mandated medication. What this means in terms of future behaviour remains to be seen.