JOHNSON COUNTY, Kan. -- Johnson County police officers attended training on how to deal with stalkers.

Kansas lawmakers recently strengthened the stalking law, adding more penalties and giving victims more power when they feel threatened.

Stalking is a felony in Kansas. In Missouri, it is a misdemeanor unless there are other aggravating circumstances.

Kansas Attorney General Steve Six said in a news release Thursday that more than 1 million women and 370,000 men are stalked in the United States each year. He said that 22 percent of all stalkers sexually assault their victims. Some stalkers have even killed or seriously wounded their victims. The new Kansas law was named for Jodi Sanderholm, a young woman from Arkansas City who was murdered in January 2007.