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Column 102008 Brewer

Monday, October 20, 2008

Law Enforcement Must Comprehend Changes in Policing

By Jerry Brewer

North American law enforcement is at its greatest crossroads

ever. Innovative programs and strategies have emerged over
the last few decades that have brought a softer approach to
police and citizen interaction, as well as a "get tough on crime"
mandate. Some bringing police, clergy, and community leaders
together to end violence, however the tide has turned and a
profound metamorphosis is needed.

This catalyst in change has been a way of life and protocol for
many Latin American nations, albeit not on the current
magnitude, nor the consequences so dire. They are fighting a
war of overwhelming proportions.

Their war is not only with organized and transnational criminals,

and terrorists, but also from within their own ranks. Their
problems manifested in corruption, lack of professionalism, lack
of training and leadership, as well as the lack of adequate
funding. The enemy is exploiting this to epidemic proportions,
and ritually spilling their blood over the streets of their
homelands.

While U.S. police and many other innovative policing

organizations have adopted community-oriented philosophies,
many of those throughout Latin America have struggled to even
keep their jobs, as well as survive. In the majority of
circumstances doing nothing and ignoring the "protect and
serve" motto is a safeguard for staying alive.

U.S. policing strategies must now focus on what has previously

been a shorter range vision on terroristic behaviors that go
beyond aircraft and skyscrapers, and suicide/homicide
bombers. The terror in our homeland comes in the form of well-
armed transnational organized criminals/gangs versus local turf
holders, the murder of police and innocent victims left in the
wake.

The carnage and ritual slaughter in Mexico has progressively

moved forward to the U.S. border. What is apparently difficult
for many to see is that any border, including a fenced border,
does not and will not contain the criminal elements or the tools
of their trade, which are sophisticated weapons of choice. Too,
it is not all about drugs. Weapons and human trafficking also
bring massive profits.

Immigrant gangsters, such as the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13)

from Central America, are now reported to be in 48 U.S. states,
as well as Washington DC and Puerto Rico. Federal authorities
report that "60 to 90 percent" of the members of MS-13 are
illegal aliens. Almost half are reported to be violent offenders,
and a staggering statistic showed the transnational nature of
this melting pot with 53 different countries represented.

What has rapidly escalated through South and Central America,

as well as in Mexico and the United States, is nothing short of a
"terrorism to radicalism" change agent. In a sense it is the
revolutionary model that had its infancy stages from Leon
Trotsky to Che Guevara.

These radicalized insurgents that have infiltrated U.S. cities for

control of turf began with the MS-13 gang, with new elements of
paramilitary trained individuals from Central America to Mexico
joining the drug cartels as powerful enforcers. The cartels were
quick to hire the most vicious and highly trained forces and
assassins. They have left a trail of death and destruction from
police and government officials to women and children. The
lure to the United States has been fueled by a voracious
demand for contraband, as opposed to a jihadist (holy war)
terrorist motivation.

As far back as 1990, on the streets of Cairo, Egypt, a

spokesman for the Islamic group Al-Jihad was killed by what
was believed to be government officials. The Group announced
its intention to respond with a terror campaign. Dozens of
police officers and intellectuals were murdered. Later the tourist
industry was targeted.

A current leader of al-Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahiri, was a part of

this movement back then and believed violence was the fuel
that "kept this radical Islamist organization running." According
to al-Zawahiri, "They had no future without terror." Suicide
attacks were necessary because "it was the means to defend"
themselves and their cause. These statements clearly
demonstrate why radicalization has emerged in these current
times.

Terrorist radicalization and their culture of violence has evolved

and been nurtured throughout Latin America. The mission is to
reject law and authority with murderous violence and mayhem.
Their weapons and tactics are sophisticated.

Understanding the new role in policing the homeland is critical

for police administrators. In lieu of a cry for less anti-terrorist
dollars and more for traditional crime, strategic thought and
impetus will clearly show that this new radicalized culture of
terror far exceeds, influences, and challenges traditional crime
for turf and other assets. It requires more technical expertise,
tools and training, acute strategic and focused leadership, and
an understanding of what Mexico, for example, is trying so
valiantly to interdict.

——————————
Jerry Brewer is Vice President of Criminal Justice International
Associates, a global risk mitigation firm headquartered in Miami,
Florida. He can be reached at jbrewer@cjiausa.org.