Aggravated Stalking in Michigan: MCL 750.411i Explained

Aggravated stalking is the felony form of stalking in Michigan. A person who engages in stalking commits aggravated stalking if at least one act violates a restraining order of which the person has received actual notice or violates an injunction, at least one act violates a condition of probation, parole, pretrial release or bond pending appeal, the course of conduct includes a credible threat, or the person has a previous stalking conviction.^[1] The basic penalty is up to 5 years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.^[2]

If you are in immediate danger, call 911. The National Domestic Violence Hotline describes its service as free, confidential and available 24/7 at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), or text START to 88788.^[7] Michigan's statewide VOICES4 hotline takes calls and texts at 855-864-2374.^[8][9]

This page explains the four aggravating circumstances, how the charge connects to personal protection orders (PPOs) and bond conditions, and what the statute says about sentencing. The underlying definition of stalking is covered in Stalking (MCL 750.411h).

Stalking comes first

MCL 750.411i does not create a new kind of conduct. It takes stalking and adds a circumstance. Stalking is a willful course of conduct involving repeated or continuing harassment that would cause a reasonable person to feel terrorized, frightened, intimidated, threatened, harassed, or molested and that actually causes the victim to feel that way.^[10] A course of conduct is a pattern of 2 or more separate noncontinuous acts evidencing a continuity of purpose.^[4]

That is why a single prohibited contact is not aggravated stalking. A violation of a PPO is punishable as contempt of court.^[11] It becomes aggravated stalking only when there is stalking, which takes a course of two or more acts, and at least one of those acts violates the order.^[4][1] The same is true of a single contact in violation of a bond condition: the statute requires stalking plus at least one act that violates the condition.^[12]

The four aggravating circumstances

Circumstance	What the statute says
Court order	At least 1 of the actions is in violation of a restraining order and the individual has received actual notice of that order, or at least 1 of the actions is in violation of an injunction or preliminary injunction.[1]
Supervision or release condition	At least 1 of the actions is in violation of a condition of probation, a condition of parole, a condition of pretrial release, or a condition of release on bond pending appeal.[1]
Credible threat	The course of conduct includes the making of 1 or more credible threats against the victim, a member of the victim's family, or another individual living in the same household as the victim.[1]
Prior conviction	The individual has been previously convicted of stalking or aggravated stalking.[1]

The charge does not require a PPO. The statute applies if the violation involves any of the four circumstances.^[1]

Violating a PPO or other restraining order

This is the link between protection orders and the criminal code: stalking in violation of a PPO is a felony.^[13] The statute requires that the person "has received actual notice" of the restraining order.^[1] The statute does not define actual notice. In People v Threatt, the Court of Appeals declined to read the PPO statute's service requirements into the term and found sufficient evidence of actual notice where the complainant's testimony showed the defendant had made statements from which his knowledge of the PPO could reasonably be inferred, had evaded service, and had spoken with the complainant and an investigator about the order.^[14]

What a PPO can restrain, and how one is served, are covered in What a PPO can prohibit and Served with a PPO: what to do.

Violating bond, probation or parole

In a criminal case, a judge may release a defendant subject to conditions reasonably necessary to protect one or more named persons, which is where a no-contact order comes from.^[15] If conduct that meets the definition of stalking follows and at least one of the acts violates that release condition, the second circumstance is present.^[12] The same applies to a condition of probation or parole.^[1]

This means a person with a pending domestic assault charge who repeatedly contacts the protected person faces more than a bond problem. A police officer may arrest without a warrant on reasonable cause to believe a release condition has been violated.^[16] The consequences can include revocation of release, forfeiture of bail, and contempt of court.^[17] And if the contacts amount to stalking, a felony charge can be added.^[12] See Violating a no-contact order.

A credible threat

A credible threat is a threat to kill another individual or to inflict physical injury on another individual, made in any manner or in any context that causes the person hearing or receiving it to reasonably fear for his or her safety or the safety of another individual.^[18] The definition asks whether the threat caused the person hearing or receiving it to reasonably fear for safety, and the words "in any manner or in any context" mean the threat does not have to take a particular form.^[18]

A previous conviction

A person previously convicted under either the stalking statute or the aggravated stalking statute who engages in stalking again commits the felony, with no further circumstance needed.^[1]

Penalties

Offense	Maximum prison	Maximum fine	Guidelines class
Aggravated stalking, MCL 750.411i(3)(a)[2][19]	5 years	$10,000	Class E, crime against a person
Aggravated stalking where the victim was under 18 at any time during the course of conduct and the accused is 5 or more years older, MCL 750.411i(3)(b)[3][19]	10 years	$15,000	Class D, crime against a person

How a guidelines class turns into a sentencing range is explained in Felony sentencing guidelines.

Three further points come from the statutes:

• The aggravated stalking penalty may be imposed in addition to any penalty for another criminal offense arising from the same conduct, or for contempt of court arising from the same conduct.^[6]
• Using the internet or a computer to communicate with any person for the purpose of committing aggravated stalking is a separate offense, and that sentence may be made consecutive to the sentence for the underlying crime.^[20]
• Charges may be filed within 6 years after the offense is committed.^[21]

Probation: at least five years if it is ordered

The general cap on felony probation in Michigan is 3 years.^[22] Aggravated stalking is treated differently. If the court places a person convicted of aggravated stalking on probation, the term may be any term of years, but not less than 5 years.^[5][23]

The court may order the probationer to refrain from stalking anyone, to have no contact with the victim, and to be evaluated for, and if appropriate receive, psychiatric, psychological, or social counseling at his or her own expense.^[24] An aggravated stalking conviction is not eligible for reduced probation, and the graduated jail caps for technical probation violations do not apply.^[25][26]

Contempt and the felony: can both be imposed?

A person 17 years of age or older who violates a PPO is subject to the criminal contempt powers of the court, with jail of up to 93 days and a possible fine of up to $500.^[11] When the same contacts are also charged as aggravated stalking, both statutes say the penalties may be added together.^[27] In People v Coones, the Court of Appeals found no double jeopardy violation in convictions for both aggravated stalking and criminal contempt for violating a restraining order.^[6]

That does not mean double jeopardy never matters. Double jeopardy protections attach to nonsummary criminal contempt proceedings, and the analysis starts with whether the Legislature authorized cumulative punishment.^[28] How contempt proceedings work is covered in PPO violation penalties.

Defenses the statute itself recognizes

Because aggravated stalking requires stalking, every limit in the stalking definition applies. Harassment does not include constitutionally protected activity or conduct that serves a legitimate purpose.^[29] That exclusion has limits of its own. In People v Coones, the defendant forcibly entered his wife's home after she refused to let him in and repeatedly tried to contact her in violation of a temporary restraining order and his bond conditions; the Court of Appeals held this was harassment despite his argument that he contacted her for the legitimate purpose of preserving their marriage.^[30]

The reasonable-person test can also defeat a charge. In People v Eichler, a 2025 decision, the Court of Appeals reversed an aggravated stalking conviction for insufficient evidence, and ordered a judgment of acquittal, where a probationer sent his probation agent 152 messages over nearly two weeks to her work-issued phone, all related to her supervision of him. The court described a "reasonable individual" as a reasonable person similarly situated to the victim.^[31]

Finally, as in a misdemeanor stalking case, evidence that the defendant kept up repeated unconsented contact after the victim asked for it to stop gives rise to a rebuttable presumption that the continued conduct caused the victim to feel terrorized, frightened, intimidated, threatened, harassed, or molested.^[32] A rebuttable presumption can be answered with evidence.

Where the case is heard

Aggravated stalking is a felony, so the case begins in district court with arraignment, a probable cause conference and a preliminary examination, and, if bound over, is tried and sentenced in circuit court.^[33] The steps are laid out in the felony case timeline and in Preliminary examination.

Related offenses that are often charged with or instead of aggravated stalking include posting a message online, malicious use of telecommunications, and home invasion.