Pages: 3

The origins of this handbook emerged during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic. At that time, a debate arose as to how the police could be best employed to prevent the spread of infections. While many advocated quite punitive interventions, not least by those with only a minimal degree of knowledge as to the implications, there were accompanying concerns as to the suitability and appropriateness of utilising the police in these roles. These debates and concerns caused some discussion and reflections amongst the editors, who simply sought to know the answer to the question, What can we learn from policing within a crisis?

Pages: 135

No chapter abstract available.

Pages: 19

Although now overtaken in extent by the Coronavirus emergency 2020, the Gloucestershire Floods, and their consequences, of July–August 2007 were one of the most significant peacetime civil emergencies witnessed in this country since the General Strike of 1926. Generally known as ‘the Gloucestershire Floods’, more technically it was an extended ‘Water Emergency’, as the flooding of 20 July was a catalyst for two other emergencies—a threat to massive regional electricity disruption and failure of drinking water supplies for over 350,000 people for almost a fortnight. Others may have had greater impact in terms of loss of life (e.g. Coronavirus 2020, the Abercarn mining disaster 1878) and damage (general flooding 1947), but that of Gloucestershire in 2007 arguably had greater impact because of the extensive media coverage (a consequence of the recent advent of 24-hour rolling television news in the UK) and the complex and extended nature of the events and their response. The police-led response to the emergencies was necessarily complex and sophisticated. It required, in staggered stages, response, rescue, relief, and rehabilitation across the county of Gloucestershire, but especially around its centrally populated core of Gloucester, Cheltenham, and Stroud. It brought forth the management of a massive relief effort to deliver drinking water to the county’s population, an extraordinary emergency civil engineering project to create a barrier around the substation in 24 hours. The emergency incident stretched for two weeks, until drinking water was fully restored. This required an extensive police-led multi-agency response, which eventually involved 25 agencies. An innovative feature of the police response was to extend the ‘Gold–Silver–Bronze’ command structure to include a higher ‘Platinum’ tier. The chief constable called for Military Aid to the Civil Power at an early stage in the operation. COBR was engaged from almost the outset, with the prime minister visiting the county on two occasions. Extensive support was received from local volunteers in the relief effort of delivering bottled water to neighbourhoods. A crucial and distinguishing aspect of the Emergency and relief operation was the early recognition that public confidence had to be maintained, and this required consciously proactive media management. Although the immediate relief operation was stood down after two weeks, the consequences of the event were still being felt over a year later, with some families waiting to be allowed to return to their flood-damaged homes. The Emergency was characterised by a high level of community cohesion.

Pages: 16

Emergencies such as terrorism, disasters, and epidemics are becoming more frequent, blurring the distinction between normalcy and crisis. In a state of emergency, authorities exercise control within the bounds of relevant laws to restore public order, but critics argue this may impinge on civil freedoms. Conversely, Japan adopts a restrained approach, attributed to citizens’ trust in the government, maintaining social order without excessive legal enforcement. This chapter examines Japan’s administrative laws and police response during the 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and the Covid-19 pandemic to highlight their crisis management. The Japanese Constitution avoids concentrating power solely in the prime minister’s hands during emergencies, preventing potential abuse. Instead, provisions for emergencies exist in the House of Councillors’ emergency assemblies and through various legal acts (e.g. Police Act, Self-Defense Forces Act, Basic Act on Disaster Management). During the Great East Japan earthquake, the Extreme Disaster Management Headquarters was established, implementing measures without a ‘disaster emergency’ declaration under the Basic Act on Disaster Control Measures. Similarly, Covid-19 prompted three ‘emergency declarations’ based on the ‘Outline of the Act Partially Amending the Act on Special Measures against Novel Influenza, etc., and Other Relevant Acts’, focusing on administrative fines for non-compliant stores rather than widespread restrictions on private rights. Police were limited to patrolling streets, lacking investigative authority or direct intervention. While some advocate stricter laws in emergencies, public opinion leans towards acceptance. The authorities’ response to crises has been largely successful, maintaining order without major freedom constraints, allowing citizens to resume normalcy with minimal disruption.

Pages: 14

When Hurricane Katrina flooded 80% of New Orleans in 2005, the city and its police department faced extreme challenges. As government on many levels failed to respond meaningfully for days on end to a compounding humanitarian crisis, a depleted, stressed New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) worked to respond to citywide crises in unprecedented circumstances. While Katrina was a cataclysmic event that would have overwhelmed any police agency, NOPD’s response came to be marked by corruption emblematic of its long-troubled history, despite valiant efforts by many officers during the storm. The exposure of NOPD’s problems led to a new, unprecedented force on the department to change in ways it never had: the most extensive court-ordered reform mandate in American policing history, requiring a nearly complete rebuild of the dysfunctional department. In the process, against all odds, NOPD went from being considered possibly the worst department in the country to a model of reform for other agencies facing crisis.

Pages: 14

China is a country that sadly experiences almost all kinds of disasters, and it often faces the frequent challenges of natural catastrophes. In response to catastrophes, several mechanisms have been developed in China, including decision-making, rescue, evacuation and relocation, mobilisation, etc. All these mechanisms played an important role in the police response to the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake. The police, especially the Armed Police, have a key role in China’s response to the catastrophes. This chapter will focus upon the Wenchuan earthquake and argue that the police response to the maintenance of social order within the disaster area was noteworthy. The Armed Police, working alongside the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, comprised the core response for relief and rescue during the disaster. The chapter will further argue that China’s experience in responding to the Wenchuan earthquake has important reference value for policing worldwide.

Pages: 14

When major weather events occur, police officers are often called upon to provide an array of emergency services to the community. In February of 2021, a major winter storm brought significant amounts of snow, ice, and sub-freezing temperatures to the state of Texas. Many residents and businesses experienced loss to their utility services at some point during the storm. The combined effects of the adverse weather, the intermittent loss of utility services, and the general lack of preparation to respond to major winter weather events resulted in the storm having a catastrophic impact on Texans. As is often the case in other major crisis events, police services in Texas were required to not only fulfil their normal duties but also help Texans work through the effects of the winter storm. Using call-for-service data from the San Antonio Police Department, this chapter provides empirical evidence to highlight how the role of policing shifted during the 2021 winter storm. Results indicate that the winter storm was associated with a significant decrease in traffic-related police calls and a consistent flow of other non-crime-based policing events (e.g. welfare checks). Property and interpersonal crimes were slightly reduced during the winter storm. Additional results highlight that the various characteristics of the storm may also be useful for explaining the changing role of the police. Weather events like sub-freezing temperatures and precipitation can have a meaningful impact on the quantity and quality of police work. Policy recommendations such as improved preparedness training for police and the public are suggested to help mitigate the impact of future adverse weather events in Texas.

Pages: 16

The chapter consists of a number of personal and professional reflections on the police management of train crashes from a ‘front line, first responder’ perspective dating back to the late 1990s. This includes train crashes and derailments in Leicestershire and at Ladbroke Grove, Potters Bar, Hatfield, West Ealing, and Ufton Nervet. A perspective is also given from a passenger point of view using my experience gained at the Hatfield train crash. Consideration is given as to whether the lessons learnt from previous train crashes, including the Clapham train crash, were relevant in terms of the police response to the incidents under discussion. The chapter also considers how the relationship BTP has had with other agencies, including other police forces, Network Rail, train operating companies, and RAIB, has developed. The lessons learnt from the incidents within the chapter will then be considered in the context of current thinking and guidance into the management of train crashes.

Pages: 11

Climate change presents a significant threat to the safety and security of communities and nations around the globe. As climate change accelerates disasters and threatens critical infrastructure, the police are already on the front line of responding to this crisis. Climate change appears to be accelerating severe weather events, as well as increasing droughts, wildfires, and other disaster events. These incidents create capacity and response challenges for public safety and emergency planning agencies, while also placing their personnel at risk. Beyond mitigating the public safety risks of these relatively short-term disaster events, climate change also poses longer-term consequences that will influence police, including population migration, economic downturns, and conflict of all types. This chapter examines the likely consequences climate change will pose for societies and communities, in particular those with consequences for policing. In addition, the chapter explores the challenges climate disasters are likely to pose to policing in both the short term and the long term. The chapter does not seek to provide definitive solutions to the policing implications of the climate crisis but rather to encourage awareness and dialog as policing systems around the world increasingly confront this emerging problem.

Pages: 12

This chapter sets out to consider the role of police when it comes to managing the human security impacts of acute natural disaster events which are expected to occur more frequently due to climate change. To this effect, it sets out to conceptualise traditional governmental policing actors as part of wider emergency management webs which work to promote resilience in anticipation of, and in response to, these crises. Noting the relative scarcity of empirical research on policing during natural disasters, we examine this phenomenon in relation to two key examples (Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Harvey) which illustrate the need for traditional policing actors to develop capabilities which enable them to anticipate and respond to non-traditional security threats. This was particularly evident during Hurricane Katrina, where marginalised communities found themselves ‘over-policed and under-protected’ by a combination of public and private policing actors. Years later, the police response to Hurricane Harvey illustrates that even relatively well-prepared police organisations which have taken significant steps to improve their adaptive capabilities may continue to rely on traditional policing mentalities and activities which are of questionable utility when it comes to promoting community safety in the context of environmental crises. Accordingly, the chapter concludes by examining a framework for ‘resilience policing’ proposed by Mutongwizo et al. (2021) and considers its potential utility and limitations for enhancing the governance and delivery of security in anticipation of the growing frequency and severity of natural disaster events.

Pages: 99

No chapter abstract available.

Pages: 11

This chapter examines the rise of new policing habits in Durban, South Africa, that give life to harm reduction principles and practices. It situates this development within a moment of crisis and tragedy in the world—the Covid-19 pandemic. During the period of a ‘hard lockdown’ in the city, politicians, police, and non-government actors created safe spaces to protect the health, human rights, and dignity of the homeless population involved in opioid drug use. Drawing on Chan’s treatment of police culture as the product of an interaction between the structural ‘field’ of policing and the ‘habitus’, the chapter examines the imperative to police differently in this ‘Durban moment’ and the ensuing shifts in everyday policing practices. It reflects on what might sustain this novel form of harm reduction policing beyond the pandemic crisis.

Pages: 11

China has seen an intensive adoption of technology in policing over recent years. The unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) enjoys an increasing profile in various scenarios of emergency policing for its unique features of being non-contact, efficient, and multi-functional. During the Covid-19 pandemic, UAVs have been employed to make broadcasts, deliver goods, assist street patrol, investigate crimes, etc. Police departments are absorbing UAVs into their force by training operators and systematically integrating UAVs into crime prevention programmes. The traditional route of police practice has been reshaped by the new technology. Nevertheless, concerns are also raised. The UAVs, following CCTVs and body-worn cameras, would pose a challenge towards citizen privacy. From the policing ethic, reliance on UAVs might result in impassive enforcement and alienate the police from the mass. Moreover, the uncontrollable factors of new technology would trigger more complicated issues for police accountability. The update in legal and regulatory framework of UAVs and related technologies used in emergency policing is a pressing matter of the moment.

Pages: 14

The Covid-19 pandemic was a crisis of untold proportions faced by the world in recent history. The response to the pandemic has global, national, and local dimensions. Governments in all countries had a significant role in the response and coordinated different departments and agencies. Police were one of the critical departments that had a frontline role in response to the pandemic. Examining the experience of the police response in Kerala state in India, this study draws conclusions regarding policing during the pandemic. The study finds that the pandemic posed severe challenges to the police, which it faced using new and innovative strategies and tactics. The efforts of the police in the state had an impact on restricting the spread of the disease in the state.

Pages: 14

For the first time in history, the world saw a pandemic that affected almost every country in 2020 with the rapid and irrepressible spread of Covid-19. The World Health Organization declared the Covid-19 pandemic on 30 January 2020. With no known treatment or vaccine for this virus at the start of the pandemic, many countries had no choice but to resort to non-pharmaceutical interventions, such as lockdowns and public health measures. In Malaysia, the government imposed the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 for the first time in history by implementing a movement control order. The Royal Malaysia Police force sprang into action to enforce this order. They were involved in monitoring, checking, and patrolling public areas and state and national borders to ensure that residents in Malaysia obeyed the movement control order and conformed to the restrictions put in place by the government. The Royal Malaysia Police were instrumental in managing the Covid-19 crisis in Malaysia while still serving its fundamental role in maintaining public order and preventing crime. This chapter describes the challenges and threats that the police force has faced during the national crisis, and the strategies and measures used to manage them.

Pages: 12

The policing of the measures to control the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has been a core aspect of the 2020–2021 corona crisis. This chapter concentrates on the differences in policing the corona crisis in France and the Netherlands. In both countries, a distinction must be made between the first half year of the pandemic and the period after September 2020. The first period has shown that there have been huge differences between these two jurisdictions. In France, the police started with a very strict and repressive approach. In the Netherlands, the police tried to develop a more pragmatic, communicative, and responsibilising style. After the summer of 2020, in both countries, the style of policing gradually started to change. In France, the most important change was that the rather tough and ‘hierarchical’ policing approach has been ‘softened’. In the Netherlands, at some periods in practice, the law enforcement of the corona rules almost seemed to have been ceased and the originally high levels of support of the Dutch citizens for the anti-corona rules and policy of the government have decreased considerably. This chapter tries to understand both the differences in policing the corona crisis between the two countries and the changes in the two countries in the way that the police have operated. Both these differences and the changes in policing can be understood by looking at the underlying frames about the relationship between state and citizens. More or less similar are the differences in frames about the relationship between police and citizens. In France, the dominant frame is of policing as a matter of ‘force’ and ‘war’; the Dutch policing style is framed in terms of responsibilisation, communication, and persuasion. A relevant factor here is also how the governments have tried to create and maintain legitimacy and support for their anti-corona policies. Both approaches created their own, specific problems that have resulted in the changes in the styles of policing and rule enforcement that were mentioned before. Despite these important differences, there are also similarities. In both countries, there have been fundamental criticisms on the legal basis of the corona measures and of the way that these have been policed. The issues of protest and criticism are often related to the specific dominating frames, in some cases in a paradoxical way.

Pages: 13

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic began in late 2019 in China and, by early 2020, had spread globally. The United Kingdom, like other countries, faced a health threat on a scale which demanded drastic action across many areas of public policy in a bid to contain the impact of the virus. Police services faced up to several immediate challenges, including helping enforce lockdown rules; encourage changes to behaviour, such as social distancing; and deal with physical requirements, such mask wearing. Police responses were conditioned by the same constraints felt by other public services, such as the need to strike a balance between the level of service that could be offered and officer safety. Mitigating actions used by certain other public services, such as instructing staff to work from home, had limited potential for the police. The chapter will, by way of comparison with other public services, illuminate the particular challenges for UK police services. The pandemic experience demanded police services reacted quickly to a fluid, rapidly changing operating environment. The chapter examines stresses faced by the police in the United Kingdom in relation to the key principles operational independence and policing by consent. The extent to which the pandemic challenged police powers and the law is also reviewed. The governance system which was used to integrate public services in England, known as local resilience forums (LRFs), receives attention along with the usefulness of the category 1 responders system provided by the Civil Contingencies Act 2004. Lessons for future contingency planning are discussed. The effectiveness of the territorial police structure in England is given consideration. Police services and their capacity to cope during the pandemic are considered in the context of historic staffing trends, with lessons to be learnt on new ways of working also discussed. Crime patterns are examined along with the record of police services in respect to charging rates in the circumstances of novel pandemic–associated breaches of the law and suspected criminality. The issuing of fixed penalty notices is another empirical reference point through which to assess the effectiveness of police responses and compare the record of different territorial services. The chapter takes an overview of the political direction police services were given utilising comparisons between the emergent situations in England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Much of the chapter draws on contemporary sources, including evidence session records and reports published by the Westminster scrutiny committees for Justice and Home Affairs, along with equivalents in the devolved nations. Reports from other policing-related bodies, such as Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS), Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary Scotland, the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), and the Police College, are also referred to. A number of interviews will be conducted with senior officers located across UK police services.

Pages: 15

A national health emergency, coupled with public order and restraint imperatives, compounded the levels of stress in policing. In England and Wales, new working patterns were negotiated to manage the constraints of a different working environment during the Covid-19 pandemic. This chapter explores the impacts of the Covid lockdown restrictions on police personnel in lockdown 1, utilising five themes: preparedness and protection, relationships with the public, changing work demands, communication, and support. Empirical data comprising the qualitative comments of frontline police personnel derived from a broader online national survey are reported to illustrate sentiment towards these issues. The qualitative data suggests that frustration and disappointment, combined with changing work practices and a perceived disconnection with the public, heightened stress levels in those working on the front line during lockdown 1.

Pages: 82

No chapter abstract available.

Pages: 14

Author Note: Correspondence concerning this chapter should be addressed to Edward R. Maguire, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Arizona State University, 411 N. Central Ave. #600, Phoenix, AZ 85004. Email: edmaguire@asu.edu .

Pages: 15

Crisis. A single word that has serious connotations. It suggests a time of intense danger, trouble, and difficulty. Crisis as a concept has been categorised into three types: creeping, slow-burn, and sudden. Its synonyms include words like calamity, emergency, catastrophe, and cataclysm. Each has a foreboding, shadowing, and dampening effect. But this word also offers a sense of optimism and hope. A crisis also implies a turning point or an inflection point. Consequently, each crisis is a two-sided coin. It has a heads and a tails. It reflects real obstacles but can also serve as a projection of constructive opportunities. This chapter will serve as case study on the crisis and its ramifications affiliated with the 2017 Charlottesville Unite the Right rally. The city of Charlottesville and the Charlottesville Police Department will serve as the focal location and agency, respectively. The origin stories for this community and its municipal police department will be provided. Particular attention will be devoted to understanding how those local policies and related policing practices of the distant and not-so-distant past impacted the unfortunate and dystopian events on 11 and 12 August 2017 and beyond. The substantive component of this chapter will be the analysis of multiple after-action reports of the 2017 Unite the Right rally. This examination will be augmented by a review of press accounts, coupled with elite interviews of law enforcement professionals. Our analysis will highlight the lessons learned that could have righted or prevented the wrongs. Implications for future research, public policies, crisis management, and other professional and communal practices will be offered that can enhance community (re)conciliation and healing and benefit relational policing efforts in Charlottesville and beyond.

Pages: 12

There has been an increase in the number, size, and frequency of violent protest activity across the United States and in most Western democracies in recent years, especially in relation to the actions of the police. The current police response to violent protest and riots is similar across the Western world and usually involves the police moving quickly to control the violence and to restore order. This chapter uses a qualitative case study approach to examine the United States police response to the riots in Seattle and Portland following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on 25 May 2020. The analysis highlights a number of weaknesses in the police response which were common to the riots in both locations.

Pages: 16

Sun Tzu is alleged to have said, ‘Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory, tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat’. Regardless of attribution, this was the position the Portland Police Bureau found itself in when addressing the unrest and civil disorder which occurred during the summer of 2020. In the middle of a crisis, policing was being asked to somehow change itself to better align with current sensibilities in a politically divided nation which had not answered that question for itself, while solving societal issues around race, which have plagued the county since its inception, and to accomplish this while stemming disorder and violence occurring in the moment. Consistent with the national response, the city chose to respond with a series of tactical actions, relying on the police to solve issues which were far beyond their scope or capabilities. While the larger implications of this event are still unfolding, this chapter seeks to explore the response of the city of Portland and the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) to this civil unrest. Recognising that the tactical response of the PPB had only a marginal impact on how events unfolded, this document will focus less on specific events and tactics and instead attempts to draw out larger, more universal implications regarding the city of Portland’s response both during and prior to the civil unrest. Addressing this challenge can be broken down into two phases: What can a city government do before unrest occurs? What can a city government do when unrest is occurring? This chapter uses the PPB and the city of Portland as a case study to explore these questions. A rough outline of what the answer to each question will be is included here: What can an agency do before unrest occurs? Work with community leaders to identify a desired end state(s) for protests, civil disturbances, and riots (these are three different phenomena). Develop the relationships necessary to bring in external stakeholders during the event to support tactics and strategies which will help achieve the desired end state. Develop policing capacity to manage these events without adding fuel to the fire. Develop an internal policing culture with sufficient agility to change behaviours which contribute to negative community–police relationships. Do not screw up (i.e. first, do no harm). Simply doing a better job of policing will minimise the number of incidents which cause community concern. What can a city government do when unrest is occurring? Work with protestors who are willing to cooperate with the government, with the goal of enabling them to engage in constitutionally protected free speech in a non-destructive manner. Employ tactics which support a strategy designed to bring about the end state identified in question number 1, while having an internal policing culture which can recognise the necessity of these tactics. Do not screw up (i.e. first, do no harm). Simply doing a better job of policing will minimise the number of incidents which cause community concern.

Pages: 13

The prolonged civil unrest in Hong Kong since June 2019 has drawn the attention of international media to China’s special administrative region. Reports and commentaries on policing episodes in Hong Kong have appeared in the headlines of most well-circulated newspapers. Hong Kong has been in the period of the ‘extraordinary’: territory-wide social disorder, confrontation between police and civil societies, and a drastic drop of public trust towards the government. Three issues frequently addressed in policing studies—legitimacy and accountability, protest management, and criminal procedural justice—gradually emerged as topical agenda in the territories. The Beijing authorities reshaped the political landscape of the SAR in early 2020. Her party leadership in Hong Kong was realigned, the line of commands of SAR’s security establishment and officials was re-institutionalised, and most importantly, the Hong Kong version of National Security Law (NSL) was promulgated, embedded to the Hong Kong Basic Law, and put into effect on 1 July 2020. The policing context in Hong Kong has been substantially changed. The ‘abnormality’ of Hong Kong was further plagued by the outbreak of a public health crisis in January 2020. The key strategy of the Hong Kong government was to contain Covid-19 by the partial lockdown of the city. Public services were suspended, facilities were closed, residents’ returnees were quarantined, and individuals deemed ‘high-risk’ because of prior contact with confirmed patients were taken to centralised quarantine facilities for medical observation and virus tests during the incubation period. A social distancing order was enacted after a substantial increase in the number of infections, prohibiting all forms of gathering for more than four people in public areas. Violations would be subject to fixed penalty, prosecution for a larger fine, and even immediate imprisonment. Enforcers of these measures included medical professionals, paramedics, civilian health and hygiene officers, and volunteers; however, the police, who are the most empowered unit, were still the backbone. In a society with public doubt towards the regime and police, the Covid-19 pandemic has all but added fuel to the scorch by embedding the force within the enforcement mechanisms of public health regulations. Set against this background, this chapter aims at unpacking the paradox that perhaps most non-Asian scholars and practitioners would be interested in: What are the changes of policing institutions during the pandemic? How does the regime empower the police to manage anti-epidemic measures? Why, under continual legitimacy crisis, do citizens still appear to be obedient to stringent Covid-19 legislations?

Pages: 91

No chapter abstract available.

Pages: 14

American policing remains grounded in the fundamentals of community policing—partnerships, problem-solving, and prevention—yet it is simultaneously shaped by post–11 September homeland security policy. Undeniably, 21st-century policing reflects a ‘new norm’ that calls for a bridge between community policing and homeland security at the local level. The events surrounding the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing revealed how community policing and homeland security principles and practices are equally necessary to ensure public safety. Through lessons identified by leaders locally and across the globe, this chapter explores how the Boston Marathon bombing response relied on preparation, planning, collaboration, and communication, within a new policy context that brought policing and the community to a different level of understanding and action. The chapter uses real-life examples and storytelling to highlight successes and failures during the Boston Marathon bombing response. These stories will present powerful lessons that offer practitioners and scholars insight into the experiences of police thrust into crises. This is the story of ‘Boston Strong’.

Pages: 10

The terrorist attacks in London during 2017 were a watershed moment for UK policing. They marked a significant shift in the impact and tempo of the terrorist threat to the public and to national security. This pressure has not been felt by counter-terrorism policing at any time before or since, with the threat being ‘any time and any place without warning’. Not only did these tragic events have a profound impact on the public and the police officers who responded to and investigated them, but they also signalled a period of intense pressure for policing nationally, both operationally and in terms of public confidence and media attention. The increase of the national threat level to ‘critical’ in May and September 2017 highlights this fact. This chapter will explore the Westminster Bridge, London Bridge, and Parsons Green terrorist attacks to examine how the police responded to the attacks and worked to prevent further attacks. This encompasses the risk mitigation processes put in place to stop copycat attacks based on the threat methodology at that time, together with the amplification of protective security advice and messaging to the public, and engagement with industry and businesses through a ‘Dare 2 Share’ model. Westminster Bridge (March) saw a lone actor targeting a crowded area and the Houses of Parliament with a vehicle and knife, resulting in the death of five persons. The London Bridge attack (June) saw a vehicle-and-knife-enabled attack at a crowded place by three individuals, resulting in the loss of eight lives. The Parsons Green attack (September) involved an IED placed by an individual on a crowded London Underground tube train. The circumstances of each attack highlight the challenges facing policing in responding to future attacks, as no sooner are protective security measures put in place to counter one methodology or target that a new methodology or target area is used. In the context of the preceding text, the chapter will focus on three key areas: Resilience and accountability. Demands placed upon the police during these events and scale. Included here are the authors’ personal experiences of reacting in the immediate aftermath (i.e. during ‘the crisis’). For example, reference will be made to the installation of security barriers at major bridges immediately after the London Bridge attack. Reference will be made to this decision-making then being examined at the subsequent coronial inquests. Amplification of messaging. Ensuring security-minded communications to the public is accurate and relevant, with effective information sharing at a time of crisis and the need to remain calm and vigilant. Engagement with the private sector. Working with and alongside other agencies to develop new ways of working and new legislation, including the ‘Protect Duty’, ACT, and the development of our understanding of ‘crowded spaces’ through engagement with the business sector and ‘Dare 2 Share’. To conclude, this chapter will explore the potential future opportunities to prevent and deter terrorist attacks as well as multi-agency responses to terrorist incidents, referencing technology together with how organisational learning enables the creation of a hostile environment for terrorists and enables policing to get ahead of the curve to future threats.

Pages: 11

Policing in a crisis, such as in the aftermath of a terrorist attack where there are mass casualties, or when conducting operations to interdict terrorist plots, is among the most challenging elements of the law enforcement and national security professions. The al-Qaeda terrorist network and associated groups, as non-state actors, thrust the United States into severe crisis following the attack on the USS Cole (DDG-67) on 12 October 2000 and the attacks of 11 September 2001. During such crisis, emotions are high and, at times, rationality is low, and fear-based decisions can have unintended and/or unanticipated consequences. We also faced a severe crisis when the US government, following the 9/11 attacks, was found to have wilfully deployed a system of interrogational abuse, including torture. Recognising the failure of the CIA torture programme at black sites and dark prisons and the sister programmes within the Department of Defense that resulted in torture being utilised at the Guantánamo Bay prison and Abu Ghraib scandal, President Bush commissioned a study under the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). A resulting report, called Educing Information, released in 2006, revealed it had been more than 50 years since the US government conducted research into interrogations. When President Barack Obama was elected in 2009, he reversed President Bush’s torture policies and established the High-Value Detainee Interrogation Group (HIG), partly as a remedy for the ODNI report’s conclusion that government spending on research on interrogation has been scant. Given the tremendous importance of questioning people during investigations, including investigations of critical events, the topic is certainly worthy of attention and, indeed, of resources. The HIG is an interagency capability which, at this point, has generated an extraordinarily rich programme of research on interviewing. Authors will provide an overview of how interview and interrogation have developed over time and discuss its utilisation after terrorist attacks on the USS Cole (DDG-67) and for the investigations of the 9/11 suspects. The chapter will discuss research on key elements of interviewing and interrogation, with a focus on ‘what works’, that is, effective interviewing. Further, the authors will discuss the adoption of research-based interviewing techniques into field settings, with the conclusion that such adoption is necessary, but that the success of translational enterprises likely hinges on partnership and collaboration between researchers and practitioners.

Pages: 16

August 1969 marked a crisis point for the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) when, after several months of political and intercommunal conflict, it was unable to cope with the associated street-level violence and the military were deployed, taking over responsibility for maintaining security and public order. A subsequent review of the police and policing (Hunt Report 1970) made recommendations that the RUC should modernise along similar lines as other United Kingdom forces. This, taken with the Royal Commission on the Police (1964), sought to restore public confidence in the police. However, political inertia and the continuing conflict created a political vacuum which did little to settle intercommunal tensions, creating a chaotic social environment in which self-styled ‘community’ defenders emerged prepared to use armed violence in pursuit of their political objectives. These emerging threats drew the military into violent and armed encounters with these groups of ‘community’ defenders. Policing is generally understood to be the police answering calls for assistance from the public, detecting crime, and maintaining order necessary for the normal functioning of society. This ‘ordinary’ or civic policing style is severely tested when regime change is sought by violence and terrorism, creating a crisis for policing and forcing the state to adopt extra security policing techniques and emergency powers. This chapter traces the development of the RUC policing style as it sought to re-establish its reputation as an ‘ordinary’ police service whilst simultaneously leading the state effort to counter-terrorism and political violence. This chapter draws on experiences of former RUC officers to explore how policing in Northern Ireland responded to the emergence of political violence, before reflecting on how this response compares with policing in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Pages: 13

From 1998 to 2003, the Solomon Islands experienced a devastating ethnic uprising that became known locally as ‘the tensions’. When fighting broke out in 1998 between the factions of the country’s two main islands, Guadalcanal and Malaita, the Solomon Islands was already one of the poorest nations in the Pacific. A fragile peace was reached with the signing of the Townsville Peace Agreement 2000. To consolidate the peace accord, the Solomon Islands prime minister requested assistance from Australia and New Zealand and from the South Pacific Leaders Forum. This request led to the establishment of the Participating Police Force (PPF), which was formed to lead the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI). This chapter examines this unique, police-led, post-conflict peacekeeping role of the PPF.

Pages: 9

This chapter takes an alternative perspective on ‘extraordinary’ policing by examining a national police agency’s effort to address the impact on the psychological health of officers working for prolonged periods in a crisis. Since the stand-up of the new National Police of Ukraine (NPU) in 2014, an armed conflict with Russian-backed separatist forces has killed more than 10,300 people and injured more than 24,000 in the country. Despite an organisational culture that has long placed a stigma on officer mental health, the NPU in 2017 recognised the urgent need to find ways to mitigate the stressors that were taking a toll on the health of their officers. This study examines how the NPU developed and implemented a stress-reduction programme built around peer-to-peer approach to treating officer trauma and burnout.

Pages: 12

This chapter deals with Aum Shinrikyo’s sarin gas terrorist attack on the subway in Tokyo, Japan, in March 1995. In particular, it will discuss the lessons learned from the incident, mainly from the perspective of police intelligence. The first part provides an overview of the sarin gas terrorist attack incident. Also, this part will explain the historical background of the Aum Shinrikyo terrorist organisation as a broad picture. In addition, the final section of this part will present a variety of previous research on the causes of Aum Shinrikyo’s development to the point where it is capable of carrying out such a large-scale terrorist attack. The second part will analyse the causes of the failure of the Japanese police to prevent the sarin gas terrorist attack, mainly from the perspective of intelligence theory. For the time being, it can be concluded that before the terrorist attacks, the highest levels of the police did not provide a clear intelligence requirement to the intelligence department. In other words, it appears that the lack of proper intelligence requirements led to the lack of adequate intelligence. As a consequence, the top police executives were not able to make appropriate preventive policy decisions. The third part will describe the reorganisation implemented by the Japanese intelligence community based on the lessons learned after the subway sarin gas terrorist attack. For example, the creation of the National Security Council and the strengthening of the Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office ensured that the policy sector gave formal requirements to the intelligence community. The final concluding section will summarise lessons learned based on the preceding discussion. When the problem of so-called ‘intelligence failure’ arises, governments often tend to strengthen their intelligence-gathering and analysis capabilities. However, the lessons learned from the sarin gas terrorist attack in Japan show a different story. In that incident, the leading cause of the Japanese police’s intelligence failure was not a lack of intelligence collection or analysis capabilities. Instead, the police failed to provide proper requirements to its intelligence department. Fortunately, after correcting these systemic problems, there have been no terrorist incidents in Japan on the same level as the sarin gas terror attack on the subway. These historical facts may provide supporting evidence for the validity of the conclusions of this chapter.

Pages: 85

No chapter abstract available.

Pages: 15

Nine days in February 2013 were a harrowing time for law enforcement agencies in Southern California. Christopher Jordan Dorner, a former police officer and naval reservist, carried out a revenge-driven rampage against the Los Angeles Police Department that traversed five counties and directly involved policing agencies. What began as an execution-style murder of a young woman and her fiancé in Orange County ended in the suicide of Dorner in the mountains of San Bernardino. Through his rambling online ‘manifesto’ released after the murders, Dorner explained his motives and threatened the lives of law enforcement officers responsible for his firing from LAPD in 2009. Taken as a credible threat, the LAPD rushed to protect 77 families in a 2,000 mi2 area and to take measures to secure its police stations and property. Law enforcement agencies across the Southland were alerted and became directly involved in the race to find Dorner. During the nine-day period, the media and the nation intensely watched as the drama played out. Police agencies gave chase from Los Angeles County to Riverside and finally into the mountains of San Bernardino County. Dorner’s vendetta resulted in the deaths of the daughter and fiancé of a former LAPD captain, a deputy sheriff, and police officer, and wounding of three officers and one deputy sheriff. It involved two carjackings, the kidnapping of the owners of a condominium unit, and the engagement of hundreds of officers and deputies from across the region. LAPD chief Charlie Beck said at that time, ‘This is an act of domestic terrorism. He has targeted those that we entrust to protect the public’. This chapter tells the story of this sentinel event. Using newspaper articles, official documents from the LAPD and other law enforcement agencies, an after-action report by the National Police Foundation, and our personal experiences, we provide an overview of who was involved, how events transpired, and what was learned from the ordeal.

Pages: 15

In the early morning of 12 June 2016, Orlando, Florida, was devastated by a terrorist attack on the Pulse nightclub, which killed 49 people and wounded in excess of 50 more. A swift police response from numerous police agencies, led by the Orlando Police Department (OPD), reacted to the calls for assistance from a single police officer who had been working at the club for security. The situation quickly evolved from a mass shooting to a hostage situation and a mass casualty rescue and recovery. This chapter will explore the police response to the incident, carefully reviewing the intricate details of decision-making and leadership during this time of crisis. The chapter closely examines capacities that were in place to respond to such an incident, and how unfolding events caused the police response to pivot.

Pages: 15

On 1 October 2017, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) confronted the deadliest mass shooting in modern United States history. Between 10:05 p.m. and 10:15 p.m., gunfire from a 32nd-floor hotel suite killed 60 and injured more than 800 people in a crowd of more than 22,000 concert attendees on the Las Vegas Strip. As LVMPD and hotel security officers responded to the scene, the shooter took his own life, leaving few, if any, clues to explain his motives. Years-long after-action reviews offer detailed assessments of the incident and outline successes and shortcomings in event preparation and incident response. These assessments provide recommendations to improve event safety and, should such an event happen again, future mass shooting incident response. We summarise the lessons learned and offer a framework for approaching mass shooting prevention and response. Sheriff Lombardo, who led the LVMPD during and after the mass shooting, reflects on his experiences and the impact of this extraordinary crisis. We offer insights to better prepare communities and first responders who face the ‘new normal’ of responding to our world’s next mass shooting.

Pages: 14

During Friday prayers on 15 March 2019, a lone gunman entered two mosques in the garden city of Christchurch and, in the worst mass shooting in contemporary New Zealand history, was subsequently convicted of murdering 51 people and the attempted murder of 40 others. The event resulted in an outpouring of national grief, highlighted the harms that can be caused by terrorist and violent extremist content shared online—the attack itself was livestreamed by the offender and was very widely distributed—and focused local and international attention on ‘White supremacist’ violence. A key consequence of the attack was the establishment of an independent Royal Commission of Enquiry (RCOI) with broad terms of reference aimed at establishing what relevant agencies knew about the perpetrator, whether agencies could have prevented the attack, and what additional measures should be taken to prevent such events in the future. Its final report made 44 recommendations. The key security agencies involved, including the New Zealand Police, were subject of intense scrutiny in the aftermath of the attack and conducted and published their own reviews, identifying areas of weakness, opportunity, and improvement. In addition to strengthening government leadership, decision-making, and the local security architecture and legislation, building stronger models of community engagement and establishing social cohesion were important themes to emerge, both from the work of the Royal Commission and from wider public debate. The Christchurch attack, and its consequences, represented a defining moment in the history of Aotearoa New Zealand and also highlights the challenge for all security agencies in confronting global right-wing extremism. Three years on, the voice of the community continues to be important in shaping progress and expectations.

Pages: 15

The 2011 Norway terrorist attack consisted of two distinct sequential lone wolf occurrences against the government, the civilian population, and a Workers’ Youth League (AUF)–run summer camp in the Oslo region on 22 July 2011, claiming a total of 77 lives. The attack with a detonated car bomb in the centre of Oslo, and the ensuing killing spree on the camp at Utøya, was exceptional not only for the Nordic countries but also in general. The perpetrator, Anders Behring Breivik, coming from a well-to-do Oslo family, had gone through a prolonged radicalisation process, as evidenced by his so-called manifesto with an extreme nationalistic right-wing ideological content. The act was carried out after extensive planning and preparations, where Breivik constructed the explosive device; obtained firearms, ammunition, and protective gear; and acquired a van for the bomb and used another car as an escape vehicle. His attack began with exploding the car bomb in the garage at the governmental quarters, severely damaging the buildings, killing 8 and injuring 200 persons. Breivik continued to Utøya, an island 38 km from Oslo, where the camp for young members of the social democratic party took place. Masked as a police officer, Breivik arrived by ferry. With his semi-automatic Ruger Storm rifle and Glock pistol, he shot 69 persons to death and injured 33. Slightly more than an hour after the massacre began, Breivik, without making resistance, was arrested by officers from the national SWAT team that had travelled from Oslo. While the police organisation’s actions initially were characterised by confusion and delay, the rescue work at the scene of the attack was conducted swiftly and with adequate resources. The attack instantly became a national trauma. Soon after the incident, a committee was appointed to in-depth describe and analyse the attack. After only a year, the extensive inquest ‘Rapport fra 22. juli-kommisjonen’ (NOU 2012:14) was published. Several other enquiries were conducted, for example, on Norwegian Police Security Service’s activities. In the present chapter, the conclusions from the national evaluation will be presented. Further, numerous health-related national studies have also been undertaken. Based on this, major questions for our chapter will be: Were there shortcomings in the police response that could have been avoided by better procedures and organisation? What impact had the attack on the planned major police reform? Was the 22 July attack an unavoidable forewarning failure? Was it a result of a genuinely unpredictable threat, or were there any identifiable indications present? Other themes will be the health perspective with consequences primarily for the victims, but also for first responders, that is, ambulance personnel, rescue workers from the fire brigade, and police personnel.

Pages: 17

No chapter abstract available.

Pages: 12

During this period of the 21st century the profession of policing in America is grappling with a pandemic within a pandemic—the Covid pandemic raging alongside the pandemic of systemic and institutionalised racism. The historic harms that continue to emerge from past policies and practices have had a traumatising effect on many members of the present-day public. Due to its vicarious nature, it is being felt by those within the law enforcement community. Considering the history of disparate service delivery, coupled with the contemporary convergence of natural and man-made disasters and disorder due to public distrust and dissent, where does the profession of policing go from here? More importantly, how do we get there? How do the crises in communities and in policing affect the policing of crises? These questions are contextualised, and a pathway forward is presented. Notable implications are shared relative to future research, intentional actions, and the need for wise leadership on behalf of stakeholders at the communal, organisational, and institutional levels.

Pages: 3

Policing of extreme events and emergencies has not been a mainstream topic in scholarly work on police, nor has it been the focus of most police reform activity, nor does it account for a very big proportion of what most police spend most of their time doing. As the contributions in this handbook have shown, however, when police are called upon to deal with extreme crises, how they perform really matters. At such times, the very fabric of ordinary life is under intense pressure, and many lives are often at stake. For a few hours, days, or months, the public is reminded how much they depend on emergency services, especially police, to protect them from overwhelming threats. While citizens are fleeing from trouble or sheltering in place, police are risking their lives by running toward the danger.