[ May 1, 2024 ]
Long overdue:
The terrorist next door: States consider sex-offender-style registries for released terror inmates
By Fred Lucas | Fox NewsExperts warn Al Qaeda is looking to make a comeback and reassert itself as the world’s most high-profile terrorist group
Story continues below advertisementDozens of inmates convicted of terrorism-related crimes will be released from prison over the next five years, and lawmakers in several states think local law enforcement have the right to know if they’re moving into their neighborhood.
That’s why officials are pushing for a new kind of registry, modeled after sex-offender registries that exist in most states – only for terrorists.
“After the Pulse nightclub and the Fort Lauderdale airport shooting, we know we can be susceptible to terrorist attacks,” Florida state Rep. Mike Hill, a Republican, told Fox News regarding his legislation to create such a terrorist registry. “A proposal like this may draw a little opposition, but this should be something that unites us.”
Hill was referring to the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, where a man who identified with the Islamic State killed 49 people in 2016; and the Fort Lauderdale airport shooting in 2017, in which an Alaska man killed five people.
Lawmakers in Louisiana and Missouri also will be proposing bills in the 2019 legislative session to establish terrorist registries modeled after the sex-offender lists, said Christopher Holton, vice president for outreach at the Center for Security Policy, a national-security think tank.
“There is precedent,” Holton told Fox News. “We are not breaking new ground.”
In 2016, the New York state Senate passed a terrorist registry, but the measure died in the state Assembly.
Under most state proposals, failure to register with local law enforcement would be a felony for those convicted of terrorism-related crimes — such as attempting to finance terrorism or seeking to join a terror cell. Registration would be for life — with some possible exceptions to be determined by state courts or law enforcement.
‘American Taliban’ John Walker Lindh is among those convicted on terror-related charges set for release in the coming years.‘American Taliban’ John Walker Lindh is among those convicted on terror-related charges set for release in the coming years. (Reuters, File)
“It’s just as important—maybe more important with regard to a national impact—as a sex-offender registry,” Missouri state Rep. Mike Moon, a Republican, told Fox News.
“Americans were joining the fight abroad or attempting to provide aid and comfort to terrorist organizations,” Moon continued. “They were apprehended, tried and incarcerated. When they are released, at least some will have the mentality to destroy America. Every sheriff should know if they are in the area.”
While the worst terrorists may be imprisoned for life, most terror-related convicts serve an average sentence of 13 years, usually in high-security federal prisons in Florence, Colo.; Terre Haute, Ind.; and Marion, Ill., The Associated Press reported.
Since 9/11, the federal government prosecuted about 400 jihadists. At least 61 individuals with terrorism-related convictions will be released from prison between 2018 and 2024, according to a December report, “When Terrorists Come Home: The Need for Rehabilitating and Reintegrating America’s Convicted Jihadists,” sponsored by the Counter Extremism Project, an international policy organization formed to combat extremist ideologies.
The report cited U.S. Sentencing Commission numbers showing the recidivism rate for federal prisoners is 44.7 percent after five years, while the rate for state prisoners is 76.6 percent. In 2010, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence estimated about 20 percent of former Guantanamo Bay detainees returned to the battlefield.
“Thus, the recidivism rate among violent extremist offenders within the U.S. is unlikely to be zero,” the Counter Extremism Project report said.
Among the terrorists set to be released in the next two years are the “American Taliban” John Walker Lindh and Kevin James, who plotted attacks on Jewish religious centers and American military institutions, noted Patrick Dunleavy, a former deputy inspector general for the state of New York, in an opinion piece for Fox News last May advocating for a national terrorist registry.
In Louisiana, state Rep. Stephanie Hilferty, a Republican, sponsored a 2018 resolution that created a task force to study the logistics of a state terrorist registry. The task force is expected to have recommendations by February to craft legislation.
“We have seen attacks on faith-based institutions and schools,” Hilferty told Fox News. “This just gives another tool to law enforcement to know when people are released for terrorism-based offenses.”
New Orleans lawyer Stephen Gele has worked with the Center for Security Policy to help draft model legislation for states. Gele noted some states have animal abuse or arsonist registries as well.
“This is modeled after the sex-offender registry, the one big exception is that it wouldn’t be accessible to the public, only local law enforcement,” Gele told Fox News. “The goal is that it can be accessed in real time by law enforcement. … To our knowledge, there is no one physically tracking these people upon release. This would be a mechanism for law enforcement in the jurisdictions they live.”
Gele stressed that such laws would not target Muslims, or any religion or race.
“The registries would include radical anti-abortion extremists or radical environmentalists that commit acts of terrorism,” Gele said. “This is not about targeting any particular group, any particular terrorist group or any particular ideology.”
A terrorist registry would not have the same volume as the sex-offender registry and thus would not have the same cost to establish, Gele added.
The National Sex Offender Registry allows each state to determine which crimes count as sex offenses. A national terrorist registry might be a better option, said retired Marine Col. Paul B. Deckert, who has advocated for the registry in Louisiana. But, it’s tough to move anything through Congress, he said.
“We have a sex-offender registry and other registries because the pattern is that certain groups of people who do bad are prone do bad again,” Deckert told Fox News. “If something does happen, don’t we want to be able to say we did everything we could to prevent it by having the tools in place to forecast the problem?”
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31 Comments5 years agoThey should be registered; in the obituaries.
5 years agoWell that’s nice … and just like sex-offender registries, criminal databases, and crime stat reports …
It will be about as effective as the Dem’s anti-Radical Islamic Terrorist policy … Open (to criminals) Borders … food stamps for drug cartels … and early release for violent drug offenders …
Not to look a gift horse in the mouth – obviously something is better than nothing – but …
Let’s be real: Registries will not Make Our Parks Safe Again, and it absolutely not stop anti-Semitic hate crimes …
nor prevent the rising tide of anti-civilization Muslim barbarians from swamping our shores …
5 years agoReply to Dan KnightAgree. But sex offenders may reform but not jihadi fanatics
Left/Liberal pro-jihadis/anti-nationals are crazy
Merkel govt funded Pro-jihadi Left/Liberals run propaganda to create more
sex slaves out of little children like in UK https://tinyurl.com/yd9jo5mfDo these scumbags have any conscience ?
5 years agoReply to Dan KnightOne upside is that ex-cons, in general, have difficulty finding a landlord. That usually results in their living a sort of “colony” existence once one finds a place to rent. See? Let one in and there goes the neighborhood.
5 years agoReply to Dan KnightAnd what about people who may be put on the registry wrongly. Would there be a process to have their names removed from it.
5 years agoReply to santashandlerIn Texas the process of registry removal is fairly straight forward. Albeit I don’t remember it, but we did have one client I ran through the process in 2009. I assume the process is equally straight forward for the national registry. Other states and local registries may or may not be more difficult.
Frankly – I don’t think getting off the registry is much of a problem if one did not belong on it. We take convicted felons off the registries all the time – unbeknownst to the general public – for all sorts of technicalities. So if someone was placed on the list – say by some bureaucratic error or by a malicious clerk or hacker – that should not be a problem. But …
Your point is well taken. The most likely problem would be a false positive. This has happened before – e.g. – using the NCIC fingerprint database they have had false positives.
Once law enforcement has identified the wrong person, busted in their door, exposed them to public shaming, and held them for some time while his identity was sorted out … the innocent party is really screwed.
Getting off the registry or clarifying that so and so is not the person on the registry or in the database can be easily done. But getting one’s reputation back may be impossible. Especially if you’ve been shamed on local TV. Plus, if they busted your door in, they may not even pay for that unless you can convince a judge to let you sue ’em for negligence. (And I know that here in Texas that can go both ways very easily.)
My concern in the original post is the false negatives. In my own short two years of doing b.s. pro-bono law – we had several sex-offenders pop up on our radar. My supervising attorney – a real nice lady who never understood why I was a conservative – would always come in ‘shocked’ that our perp in the case was not registered. … It was all I could do not to roll my eyes every time.
Another concern – not expressed above, and I have not mentioned it for brevity – but it is important … Is the slippery slope.
Obviously if we keep creating registries for this that and the other – sooner or later the Left will demand a registry for conservatives. This could take all sorts of forms – but about the only one I think they would not use is a bright yellow armband with the Star of David …
Just MHO, but I believe we need much more serious measures against Jihadis. Whatever we do should not require a registry – whether we hang them, shoot them, or deport them at 38000 without a parachute doesn’t matter … we need to make sure our little girls can play in our parks without worrying about Sharia law.
Have a great weekend!
5 years agoReply to Dan KnightWell said, Dan. Since you are in the legal profession, I’m sure you are much more familiar with the processes, etc., of getting one’s name removed from such a list. Good point on getting one’s reputation back. Something that is rarely talked about.
My uneducated guess, is that getting one removed from such a list, would not be so easy here in the fantasyland that is California.I’m in full agreement. We certainly don’t need more registries. Especially since we have a national Real ID looming on the horizon.
And you have a wonderful weekend, as well.5 years agoReply to Dan KnightAlso look at what they are proposing – they are leaving it up to the psychopathic islamist criminal to self regulate and take it upon himself to register with law enforcement – A sympathetic/empathetic conscience is not an
homicidal islamics strongpoint/trait AT VERY BEST we’re looking at a 45% return to mayhem from Federal prisoners and a 77% return from State level prisoners – Not real fuc-ing encouraging..Alternative? make that commitment to islamic jihad? – extermination – Problem solved.No more innocent people have to suffer at the hands of ” the religion of peace “5 years agoThe recidivism-expectation must be zero, anything else is unacceptable to the public.
We need a truth-offender registry. Trump said of Pamela Geller: “Why is she insulting everybody?” meaning he condemned her for standing up for the truth.
Social media, education, Barack Hussein Obama, Hillary Clinton, Wikipedia. They all offend the truth by censoring for the unjust Muhammadism.5 years agoReply to Jay WizzyTrump’s quote regarding Pamela Geller is the pot calling the kettle black and unjust. Pamela is one of a handful who is truthful; hence, her conscience and ethics rise above copious politicians including Trump. A truth-offender registry is a brilliant but likely unachievable. Imagine politicians, especially Clinton(s), Obama and yes, Trump having to pass a lie-detector test, not unlike athletes tested for drugging; they would be in want and need of a top-notch deodorant and legal counsel.
I hadn’t heard Trump’s quote about Pamela, but nothing surprises me.
5 years agoThis prospective and insane Jihadi registry confirm everything anyone on this site or other sites already know; the nutters are doing their utmost to cause the downfall of this Republic. Citizens should protest if this lunacy and treachery come to fruition. It is the citizens’ lives that are in jeopardy, not the bird-brained politicos dreaming and scheming inanities to appease, mollycoddle those bent on the murdering, maiming and ultimately the ruination of America. Americans, those who not merely value their lives but Constitutional Rights must rise-up to inform the ill-informed politicians and their sheeple that enough is enough.
Leftists have no issue on civil-disobedience or anarchical rioting to express that they are pissed-off. It is the norm, the squeaky wheels, malcontents for the godless Left in tandem with their Theocratic cultists, Islam will stop at nothing to decry the rights of those diverse of their theocratic, autocratic demands.
Those holding the importance and weighing the gravity of losing one’s Constitutional Rights and retaining our Constitutional Republic are branded extremists, enemies of the state; Patriotism, in the skewed, treacherous mindset of the Leftist-Progressives is indictable, also, to the treasonous Democrats and its Muslim brothers and sisters.
5 years agoI trust that all offenders born outside the USA will be immediately deported ,on their release.
5 years agoWhy any debate? While we (our law enforcement and law makers) talk, these maggots attack and k!ll people. We are way behind the curve on this. You fight these people the same way they fight us.
Our civility is gonna be the death of us as a civilization. We are still approaching this as a law enforcement issue when it is a combat issue. My father and grand father’s generations did not defeat the Imperial Germans, the Nazi Germans, the Imperial Japanese and Mussolini Italians with law enforcement and a data base registry.
They defeated them by k!lling them!!!
5 years agoReply to felix1999Yes the one consistency with this Muslim enemy is they are very stupid and they won’t stop trying to kill us. So as the years go by, Muslims will keep raping/killing while we keep ruling out excuses, such as mental illness, or lone wolf, etc.
Until eventually people will have no choice left but to admit that Muslims are following their manual of genocide the Quran and that is why they are trying to kill and conquer us.
Now how many years will that take? You’d think we’d have figured it out by now, nearly 20 years after 9/11 but hopefully it’s trending in the right direction. We no longer call them “violent extremists.” Now it’s “radical Islamists.” I can’t wait till we call them “Muslims” and “Jihadists.”
It’s like being the kid who sees the Emperor is naked while everyone is trying to convince each other he’s not. The truth is in our damn face, Islam is the enemy. Muslims are today’s Nazis, defeat them.
5 years agothis should be required reading…and why there will never be peace with so called palestinians!
American Commissioners to John Jay, 28 March 1786
We took the liberty to make some inquiries concerning the Grounds of their pretentions to make war upon Nations who had done them no Injury, and observed that we considered all mankind as our friends who had done us no wrong, nor had given us any provocation.
The Ambassador answered us that it was founded on the Laws of their Prophet,1 that it was written in their Koran, that all nations who should not have acknowledged their authority were sinners, that it was their right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could take as Prisoners, and that every Musselman who should be slain in battle was sure to go to Paradise.
source: https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/01-09-02-0315
5 years agoFor crying out loud, strip them of their citizenship and DEPORT them.
Use biometrics at all points of entry and NEVER let them back in to the U.S. under any circumstances.5 years agoIMO this is just ridiculous. I can’t understand why convicted terrorists of any sort are not executed.
5 years agoThe scum should have been executed so that they can meet their pedophile prophet in Hell.
5 years agoI’ve got a better idea. Instead of a list a firing squad. Works to stop recidivism every time it’s done…
5 years agoAll of them are sex offenders to begin with so this makes perfect sense.
5 years agoInstead of showing their purty pictures just EXECUTE them OK? Then you don’t have to worry about their dogdamn portraits.
Unless you need it for the funeral.
5 years agoHas CAIR started whining, complaining, and threatening lawsuits yet ???
5 years agoNot a bad idea, but the individual states will need to have a serious attitude and be diligent in their efforts at maintaining their databases. I, for one, would appreciate knowing if some traitorous jackwad lived in close proximity.
As an example of how things can go wrong, the church shooter at Sutherland Springs, TX had convictions for domestic violence and a less than honorable discharge from the military, two automatic bars to gun ownership that were never reported.
Be safe, be trained, be alert.
5 years agoBetter 17 Years late than never??!! (Only if they can get it through! Our filthy lying media SHOULD be all over the POS politicians that vote AGAINST this measure!)
5 years agoThere was a time in my life when sex-offenders were sent to prison for life and rapists could face the Death Penalty. Those were the good days, but then people questioned if all sex crimes deserved the same punishment. We modified these laws towards lieniency and now rapists get short terms.
You can not rehap a Sociopath. They never think that the rules apply to them. Jihadis have left all reason behind and act with religious fervor. It is their religion, and few turn away from it. All ex-convicts are monitored and if you turn them loose, you still need to find a way to keep your finger on them. So, all I am saying is that a leopard does not change his spots, neither will most criminals and wind up repeating their actions.
With ex-Convict Jihadis, I would never turn them loose. It is a problem waiting to assert itself. A hater will lways be a hater because the first person he hates is himself, for being different. Just keep them in jail to protect the rest of us. In cases like the Boston Marathon Bomber, a Deth Sentence is called for. But we don’t do that anymore. SMH5 years agoIf the’re terrorists they should be EXECUTED or DEPORTED. PERIOD
5 years agoHow about deportation?
5 years ago“The Need for Rehabilitating and Reintegrating America’s Convicted Jihadists”
There is a need for rehabilitation for convicted jihadists… but secularism and “moderate” Islamism isn’t going to result in a rehabilitated person. They’ve been promised a paradise which consists of endless orgies. Secularism only offers rotting 6feet under the earth. Meanwhile there is no such thing a “moderate” Islam… that is merely a ruse, taqiya, to hide the Islamist’s true agenda. True rehabilitation requires repentance… a change of heart. No rehabilitation is possible short of a divine intervention by the Holy Spirit.
