Jonathan R. White
www.cengage.com/cj/white
Chapter 15:
Law Enforcement
Bureaucracy and Homeland
Security
Rosemary Arway
Hodges University
The Bureaucracy Challenge
 Currently, a variety of Senate and House
committees are responsible for different aspects of
security in the U.S.
o
Federal, state, local, tribal agencies and private
corporations
 Max Weber
o
Coined the term of bureaucracy to describe
professional, rational organizations designed to serve a
purpose.
 Bureaucracy and Preventing Terrorism
 There is a controversy concerning homeland
security bureaucracy
o
o
Efficiency of consolidating power
Efficiency of decentralized services
Intelligence and Bureaucracy
 FBI is a leading agency for
counterterrorism.
 Important services are shared with
Border Patrol, Secret Service and CIA.
 Under the intelligence reform law of 2004
all intelligence coordination must take
place in the National Counterterrorism
Center (NCTC).
State, Local, and Tribal
Law Enforcement Bureaucracies
 There are more than 800,000 state, local,
and tribal law enforcement agencies in the
U.S.A.
 Law enforcement executives must support
task orientated methods in counterterrorism.
o Task orientation focuses the actions of
individuals and departments.
 Additionally, commitment to threat analysis
and identification of pre-incident indicators
have to be taken into consideration.
Border Protection
 Borders of the U.S. are vulnerable in several
areas:
o Long stretches of unprotected areas along the northern
and southern borders are wide open for infiltration.
o Over 300 seaports must be secured.
o Air travel and entry points require security.
o Noncitizens within U.S. borders to be accounted for.
 The DHS must coordinate the activities of different
agencies responsible for border protection.
o Custom Service
o Immigration and Customs Enforcement
o Coast Guard
Policy Disputes
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The 9-11 Commission Report addressed border
security, recommending reforms.
More than 500M people cross U.S. borders every
year; 330M are foreigners.
The system is unable to provide security or monitor
foreigners in the U.S.
An agency as broad as DHS will face criticism from
various outside and inside groups with conflicting
demands.
DHS issues:
o
o
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Deployment of personnel
Policies concerning international travelers
Responsibility of local agencies
Immigration Debate
 Boarder Security involves issues of:
o Tightening entry of illegal immigrants
o Tighter controls on immigration from countries
that may harbor hostility toward the United
States
 Diminyatz notes four major threats related to
protection of the southern border:
o
o
o
o
Terrorism and weapon of mass destruction
Drug trafficking
Human smuggling
Infectious diseases
Immigration Debate
 Buchanan
o Unregulated flow of immigrants from the southern
border opens the door to terrorist infiltration and to
destruction of American culture.
 To correct the situation, U.S. military forces should
be deployed along the border until civilian law
enforcement can be consolidated and effective
barriers can be established.
 The federal government needs to form partnership
with local law enforcement.
o There is a danger this would impede effective local
law enforcement which requires contacts within
illegal immigrant communities.
Infrastructure Protection
 Clarke – There are a number of threats facing
the nation’s infrastructure.
o Information systems
▪
Most computer systems are vulnerable to viruses.
o Internet and computer networks that support
transportation and economic systems are also
vulnerable to attack.
▪
Shut down electrical grids and computers – shut
down transportation and communication
o Energy
▪
The nation’s power system and technological
organizations that support it are vulnerable to
disruptions.
Private vs. Governmental Partnership
 Private industries (i.e., General Motors, Wal-Mart)
have excellent information gathering and security
systems.
o
Information used for competition and profit
 Private industries often share information with the
government for the public good.
o
One-way flow of information
 Police forces need to be linked with security forces
charged with infrastructure protection.
 Cybersecurity also requires expertise beyond the
scope of most law enforcement agencies.
Infrastructure Protection
 All levels of law enforcement are faced with the
problems of technical specialists and access to
privately owned portions of the infrastructure.
 Links with the public and private organizations
are necessary.
 Linkages should be developed in two crucial
areas:
o Police should be linked to the security forces already
associated with infrastructure functions.
o State and local law enforcement agencies must
establish formal and informal networks with the
organizations in their jurisdictions.
Thinking Internationally
 Terrorism is an abstract concept fluctuating
according to political circumstances.
 Security forces require people with critical
thinking skills.
o Abstract reasoning skills
o Knowledge of international politics and history
▪ Specialized expertise in particular regions
 Law enforcement agencies in the U.S.
generally do not have skilled specialists.
o Presents problems as DHS tries to create
information networks.
Rivalries
 Federal agencies, at times, act more like rivals
than partners.
o 9-11 Commission noted this in its report.
 Federal agencies’ failure to cooperate with
each other can influence local police
relationships.
 Many police executives in the U.S. are not
convinced the FBI is in partnership with efforts
to stop terrorism.
 If law enforcement in the U.S. is to become
part of homeland defense, the relationship
between the FBI and local law enforcement
must improve.
Local Control and Revenue Sources
 Civil libertarians believe consolidated police
power will erode civil rights.
 Local government officials worry their agendas
will be lost in the federal maze.
 Costs of homeland security responsibilities adds
a level of frustration to local governments.
o Some jurisdictions want homeland security money
distributed evenly.
o Larger jurisdictions argue that money should be
distributed according to likelihood of attack.
o Others are concerned that homeland security
grants are given to local governments for bizarre
reasons.
▪ $36,000 to the state of Kentucky to keep terrorists
from infiltrating bingo halls.
Border Security: Critique and Reform
 Bureaucracies in the U.S. are squandering the
opportunity to defend it.
 Flynn – U.S. has made two crucial mistakes:
o Homeland security separated from national
security.
o Under-qualified personnel that cannot maintain
national security.
 U.S. has not organized its resources for
defense.
 Prepared to fight overseas while neglecting to
protect the home front.
Border Security: Critique and Reform
 Flynn – According to the CIA, weapons of
mass destruction would most likely be
smuggled into the U.S. by sea.
o Difficult to inspect all of the cargo containers in
seaports.
o Oceans represent an opportunity for terrorists.
 Bush administration has done very little to
protect the nation’s seaports.
o U.S., in 2004, spent more money every three
days to fight the war in Iraq than it has in three
years of protecting seaports.
Border Security: Critique and Reform
 Nation’s critical infrastructure remains
open to attack.
o Department of Defense, in 2005, was allotted
$7.6 billion to enhance the fortifications of its
bases.
 In the same budget, the infrastructure for the entire
nation received $2.6 billion.
o Dirty bombs and chemical threats can be
developed from hazardous material.
 Over the past three years funds to secure the
disposal of such material have been drastically
reduced.
Border Security: Critique and Reform
 While enhanced border security is
necessary, this alone will not protect the
U.S. against a terrorist attack.
 Jihadists are fully aware of vulnerabilities
in the infrastructure.
 Safest and most effect way to hit the
U.S. is to hit the infrastructure.
o Jihadists understand the economic effect of
their actions.
Border Security: Critique and Reform
 Flynn – Development of an integrated
system against terrorism would reduce
the drug trade, contraband smuggling,
and theft.
 Law enforcement agencies should look
for weaknesses in the system, probe
them, and make changes based on the
results.
 Not every attack can be prevented;
however, most terrorism can be deterred
through cooperative partnership.
Successful Law Enforcement
 New approaches to the law enforcement mission:
o Police must be prepared to look beyond the arrest
situations to communicate intelligence beyond local
jurisdiction.
o Local police can expand their skills in detecting and
reporting deceptive behavior.
o Homeland Security must develop emergency
response plans that would define roles and
responsibilities to be put into place after an incident.
o Joint terrorism Task Forces
▪
System that separates criminal and national security
intelligence.
JTTF System
 The JTTF system may serve as an
example for the first step in law
enforcement cooperation.
 Regional units designed to combat
terrorism combine
o
o
o
o
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Local police officers
State police officers
Various federal police officers
Prosecutors
Correctional officers
JTTF System
 Local and state officers are given
federal authority; these officers’
presence give federal agents the
ability to act in local jurisdictions.
 Local police are in a perfect position
to engage in intelligence gathering
activities.
o France
o Germany
o Canadians and British