Remember when Bethenny Frankel said that Jason Hoppy was torturing her, and that her life was hell because of it?
Obviously, there were bits of hyperbole thrown in there, but apparently she was super serious about parts of that.
Serious enough that ex Jason Hoppy’s had to make another court appearance.
This is actually pretty alarming.
Remember how Bethenny Frankel was granted a restraining order early this year after Jason Hoppy’s arrest for stalking her?
We sure do.
You know that they sure do.
Well, now Jason Hoppy’s facing new charges of stalking in the third and fourth degrees.
Now, we looked up exactly what those charges mean according to New York State law (so that you don’t have to).
Fourth degree stalking has a few definitions, but this is the one that we think applies here:
“Conduct consists of following, telephoning, or initiating communication or contact with such person, a member of such person’s immediate family or a third party with whom such person is acquainted, and the actor was previously clearly informed to cease that conduct.”
Apparently Frankel’s attorney provided the court with documents, including 160 unwanted texts from Hoppy.
That’s more unwanted texts than there were first-generation Pokemon, folks.
Third degree stalking is a little more complicated, because a lot of it has to do with prior acts of fourth degree stalking as precedents.
But third degree stalking could also mean taking action that might make Bethenny fear for her safety.
Look, Bethenny Frankel says dumb things sometimes, mostly because she forgets that things that don’t impact her at all can be life-and-death for others.
But that doesn’t mean that she deserves to be harassed, hounded, and stalked.
Jason Hoppy’s vow to destroy Bethenny Frankel is honestly pretty terrifying.
Like, that kind of line is dramatic and a little goofy on soap operas.
In real life, like … that can mean everything from a harmless feud to the kind of obsessive hatred that ends in a murder-suicide.
Nobody needs that in their lives.
Unfortunately, stalking is a hugely common problem.
New York and LA have laws in place that cover these situations much better than some places.
All over the country, a lot of women deal with threats of violence that they receive online from people whom they’ve never met.
Unfortunately, many police departments don’t know what to do about that, many law codes haven’t been updated to cover physical threats made online.
And a lot of women don’t have the resources to protect themselves or pursue restraining orders.
But just because Bethenny Frankel is a woman of means doesn’t mean that she’s impervious to harm.
Harassment is a very real crime that can impact just about anyone.
And, honestly, if there are threats of harm involved in these recent charges, those should be taken seriously, too.
Just because Jason Hoppy isn’t an axe murderer doesn’t mean that his words should just be brushed off as “talk.”
A lot of horrible acts start off as “talk.”
Threats and harassment are not the way to handle your divorce, folks.
And we totally get why Bethenny’s describes her experience as “torture.”
Whatever Jason Hoppy’s alleged actions that led to these charges, she might have some very real and very understandable fears.
That’s what the legal system’s supposed to be there for.
Let’s hope that this gets resolved in court.