DEAR ABBY: I am very much upset after having read about the 19-year-old man who became obsessed with a 21-year-old movie actress, so he tracked her down and fatally shot her!
What is even more frightening is the fact that he was able to obtain this girl's home address through her motor vehicle registration. I understand that because this information is a matter of public record, it is accessible to anyone who wants it.Abby, I think we need some laws to protect public figures from people who are obsessed with celebrities. Remember what happened to Jodie Foster, John Lennon and Theresa Saldana? And now Rebecca Schaeffer can be added to that list.
What do you think? - HEARTSICK IN OREGON
DEAR HEARTSICK: I think the home addresses of private citizens - regardless of whether they're celebrities or not - should not be available to anyone without the knowledge and consent of the people who are being sought. It's not only a matter of privacy; it's a matter of security.
DEAR ABBY: I was a common-law wife 40 years ago. John and I couldn't marry because his wife wouldn't give him a divorce. We had two beautiful daughters. John died when the girls were 5 and 7. Now they are grown and want to join the Mayflower Society. They need some vital records in order to do so, and I've put them off as long as possible.
Can I get a back-dated marriage certificate? I have John's death certificate and my daughters' birth certificates, showing John as their father; now all I need is a back-dated marriage certificate.
After John died, I married again and had a third child, but my only concern at this time is getting a back-dated marriage certificate so my daughters can qualify for the Mayflower Society. Thank you for any help you can give me. Please hurry. - WAITING IN NORTH CAROLINA
DEAR WAITING: Your common-law marriage would not have been valid under any circumstances, since John was already married. Even if you had been married by someone authorized to perform a marriage ceremony, your marriage would have been bigamous and, therefore, invalid.
You cannot get a "back-dated marriage certificate" because the marriage you describe as "common-law" was clearly invalid. Sorry, but your daughters are out of luck so far as joining the Mayflower Society - if their eligibility depends upon their parental ancestry and the legality of your relationship with their father.
C) 1989 Universal Press Syndicate