NCJ Number
182961
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 67 Issue: 3 Dated: March 2000 Pages: 61-63
Editor(s)
Charles E. Higginbotham
Date Published
2000
Length
3 pages
Annotation
Municipalities must work with the Federal Government in fighting domestic terrorism, and local law enforcement agencies must join in the effort.
Abstract
The basis for any effective counter-terrorism effort is intelligence, and the bombing of the World Trade Center in New York and the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City has increased the interest of municipal police agencies in establishing counter-terrorist intelligence capabilities. The Los Angeles Police Department established the Public Disorder Intelligence Division (PDID) in 1971 to gather intelligence on individuals who sought political or social change through illegal means. This unit was shut down because a number of investigations conducted by the PDID went beyond the scope of the division's purpose. Much of what was learned from the PDID was used to establish what is now called the Anti-Terrorist Division. Guidelines are presented for other jurisdictions interested in establishing a counter-terrorism intelligence unit that focus on intelligence collection, oversight, personnel selection, and command and control. The importance of defining what activities an intelligence unit should accomplish is emphasized.