WASHINGTON -
By EILEEN SULLIVAN
Associated Press
(AP) - The Obama
administration is providing senior state and local police officials
with its analysis of homegrown terrorism incidents, including common
signs law enforcement can use to identify violent extremists.
The warning signs
identified for police include someone joining a group advocating
violence, receiving support from a network that plans attacks or seeking
out charismatic leaders who encourage violence. The analysis was
conducted by the Homeland Security Department, the FBI and the National
Counterterrorism Center. An overview of the findings was shared with The
Associated Press and was being presented Wednesday at a conference at
the White House.
The conference marks the
first time this unclassified analysis is presented to 46 senior federal,
state and local law enforcement officials, many of whom are police
chiefs and sheriffs. The conference also includes sessions on other
programs the federal government has for countering violent extremism and
a briefing from a deputy chief of the Los Angeles Police Department
about what the city has done on this front.
"Engaging local communities
is critical to our nation's effort to counter violent extremism and
violent crime, and this meeting brings together many of our partners,"
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said. Napolitano, Attorney
General Eric Holder and the president's counterterrorism adviser, John
Brennan, planned to attend the White House conference.
There has been an uptick in
attempted attacks by Americans and other legal U.S. residents in the
past few years, prompting the Obama administration to place a priority
on finding ways to stop this type of violence. The administration rolled
out a thin strategy last year that put local communities - not
Washington - in charge of countering violent extremism in the U.S. That
strategy was short on details and did not focus on threats from Islamic
extremists.
The White House has
encouraged law enforcement to reach out to Muslim communities to build
relationships, insisting that these communities are partners in the
fight against terrorism. At the same time, the government is trying to
develop ways to help local law enforcement detect behavior that could
indicate someone is plotting a violent attack. The challenge has been to
provide behavioral indicators that indicate the potential for violence
rather than religious beliefs or other constitutionally protected
rights.
"The important role of
local law enforcement is a key part of the administration's approach to
countering violent extremism in the homeland," Brennan said. "Law
enforcement officials work with communities every day and understand how
to build partnerships to address this tough challenge."
Analysts from the FBI,
Homeland Security Department and National Counterterrorism Center
reviewed 62 cases of homegrown violent extremists and found basic
similarities. The cases included violent extremists who adhered to a mix
of ideologies, including people who ascribed to white supremacist
beliefs and people inspired by a violent interpretation of Islam. The
analysis is not a psychological profile of a homegrown terrorist, but
instead offers similarities among cases that could help local law
enforcement better understand and detect threats.
In the 62 cases reviewed,
the subjects increasingly spoke out against the government, blamed the
government for perceived problems and did so in a way that caught the
attention of other people in their communities, according to the senior
counterterrorism official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss
the private White House event. Subjects became active on the Internet
to espouse extremist views. In some cases, the subjects purchased
weapons, ammunition or explosive materials.
Analysts found that a
person's origin, ethnic background and socioeconomic status are not good
indicators for potential violent extremist activity, the senior
counterterrorism official said.
Later this month, a
training program for local law enforcement on countering violent
extremism will be tested in Southern California, and the government
intends to roll out the training to the rest of the country through
2012. Part of the training will focus on understanding constitutionally
protected activities so law enforcement can distinguish between illegal
acts and free speech. The official said the FBI academy plans to
incorporate this training into its programs as well.
The FBI came under fire last year for some controversial training sessions that portrayed Islam as a violent religion.
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