Terrorism: An Investigator's Handbook.

Terrorism: An Investigator's Handbook, William E. Dyson, Anderson Publishing Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, 2001.

While the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon have made terrorism one of the hottest topics in law enforcement, many officers have little or no training in this field. Fortunately, William Dyson has written Terrorism: An Investigator's Handbook as a guide for law enforcement officers. Terrorists, the author says, "are driven by their political objectives, not by the profit motivation that drives most criminals." The author defines several types of terrorism, with motivations that range from political to religious, ethnic to technological. All of them have an agenda for forcing change through violence. The author recommends that law enforcement officers learn as much as possible about the beliefs of a terrorist group before beginning an investigation.

Chapter four, "What Investigators Need to Know About Terrorists," poses questions that investigators will need to consider during a terrorist investigation. Such questions can help officers explore the terrorist group's philosophy.

* What is the political philosophy of the terrorist group to which the subject belongs?

* What aspects of this philosophy does the subject strongly support? What aspects does the subject least support?

* Does the subject fully understand the group's philosophy? Can the subject verbally defend it?

* Is the group's philosophy rational?

Other questions deal with the terrorist group's rules and structure and the individual member's commitment to the group, relations with family members, and outside support.

Most of the book deals with specific investigative techniques for terrorist investigations, such as interviewing, surveillance, and trash and mail covers, to name a few. It examines each technique in detail and compares it with the way in which the same techniques are used for other criminal investigations. The book also discusses common pitfalls and real-life examples of what officers should not do. For instance, interviewing subjects for a terrorism investigation will require additional planning and foresight. If the investigating officers do not want the subject to know of the investigation, they should consider whether it is a good idea to interview the subject's family and friends who may be in sympathy with the subject. If terrorists learn of the investigation, they may abort their plans or disappear completely, thereby bringing the entire investigation to a halt.

William Dyson speaks from his experience gained in over 30 years of working for the FBI as a specialist in political terrorism investigations. Presently, he works for the State and Local Anti-Terrorism Training (SLATT) project. SLATT "provides training to local law enforcement officers to better equip them to address the terrorist problem and to prevent violent attacks."

This book is written in easy-to-understand language, with summaries given at the end of each chapter. It contains an index and appendices of key terms and concepts, as well as a glossary of extremist terms.

Reviewed by Corrine Koepf, MLS, Resource Specialist University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York