Rusty Shackleford – NYC Terror Plot And The Post-9/11 Catch-22
Rusty Shackleford has a terrific article up on PJTV. In it he looks at an important question facing the law enforcement community, and as well, society. Do we arrest potential terrorists early and possibly allow them to plead to lesser charges, or do we wait and risk a possibly catastrophic terror attack? It’s a difficult question,and one that is not easily answered.
From the Article
Hollywood would have you believe that terror plots are always disrupted only moments before the bomb is about to be triggered. In real life there are no superheroes, and the consequences of waiting too long to act are just too dire to consider. In the real world, if a terrorist has his hand on the trigger, it’s already too late.
If you intervene too early, a group of serious terrorists intent on doing real harm may appear to be only a bunch of kids with fantasies full of grandeur and a lot of bravado. The weak evidence of an actual criminal conspiracy in these cases may lead prosecutors to seek lesser charges such as “lying to immigration officials.”
