Policing Terrorism ─ Research Studies into Police Counterterrorism Investigations

Based upon information from the UK Special Branch Counter-terrorism unit and several other sources, this book take readers through the mechanics of a counter-terrorism investigation—from legal definitions to admissibility at trial. Through observations, group interviews and focus groups, the author examines surveillance, intelligence gathering, and the problem of lack of discretion at lower ranking levels. The book covers radicalised methods to recruit terrorist individuals, information obtained from informants both in and out of police custody, integrity issues, risk assessment of informants, and police interrogation of suspects.

David Lowe is a principal lecturer at Liverpool John Moores University Law School. Prior to becoming an academic, he was a police officer for 27 years with the UK’s Merseyside Police, with the majority of his service spent as a detective in the Special Branch Counterterrorism Unit. His research in policing, terrorism, and security has been published in books and journals. He also coedited the second volume ofTrends in the Judiciary: Interviews with Judges from across the Globe. He is a regular contributor to Westlaw’s legal encyclopaedia,Insight, on legal issues related to terrorism, and is regularly used by the television, radio, and the print media in the UK, Europe, and the United States for commentary in these areas.