:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/UHCYVUBXUBDXWLXJRW3KMRXNJE.jpg)
Singer Billie Eilish has been granted a temporary restraining order against an alleged stalker who she says camps outside her family home in Los Angeles and throws "extremely disturbing" letters onto their property, according to documents obtained by NBC News.
In a request filed in LA county court, Ms Eilish (19) said that John Hearle (23) had been camping outside a school across the road from the family residence and "perching" on the school's fence to look into her home.
She claimed Mr Hearle had harassed and threatened her, making a throat-slitting gesture when he saw her.
His presence, she wrote, had caused her “emotional injury including fear for my safety, fear for the safety of my family and loss of my sense of peace and tranquillity and security in my home and personal space resulting from the repeated instances of harassment”.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/3SVUCJLDUUCXJMGMK7WUCMGFG4.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/DRWGOZ2G2ICBWXT7YSPDRKFI3I.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/JBHUYB5MSQLTOHNRKJXATYCE2U.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/GGMMJHCGPIFR3MSHYGBOQDWXTE.jpg)
‘I just want to scream’
Ms Eilish wrote: “I no longer feel safe going outside my home and enjoying basic physical exercise in my neighbourhood, as he could attempt to approach and hurt me. Every time I see him I just want to scream.”
A hearing on the matter will take place on March 4th. Ms Eilish’s representatives offered no comment.
In June 2020, a judge extended to three years a restraining order against Prenell Rousseau after he visited Ms Eilish's home seven times, showing "erratic behaviour", including sitting on the porch to read a book after Ms Eilish's father told him that she wasn't home.
The order prohibits Mr Rousseau from attempting to contact or come within 100m of the singer and her parents, harassing the family or visiting Ms Eilish’s workplaces.
As a result, Google blurred Ms Eilish's family home from Street View.– Guardian