May Contain Mark-Ups

By Joshua D. Freilich & Graeme R. Newman

The book “Reducing Terrorism Through Situational Crime Prevention,” edited by Joshua D.Freilich and Graeme R. Newman, explores how situational crime prevention (SCP) techniques can be applied to reduce terrorism. The central theme is that strategies proven effective in preventing conventional crimes can also mitigate terrorism by manipulating environmental factors to block opportunities for terrorist acts. The book includes various case studies and theoretical discussions that illustrate how SCP can be tailored to address specific types of terrorism, such as bioterrorism, hostage-taking, and insurgent attacks.Each chapter delves into different aspects of SCP, such as increasing the effort required to commit a terrorist act, increasing the risks for terrorists, reducing the rewards, and removing excuses for terrorism.One notable case study in the book is the analysis of the 23 Korean hostages inAfghanistan, which demonstrates how SCP measures can be applied in real-world scenarios to prevent terrorist kidnappings. The book also discusses the importance of understanding the terrorists decision-making processes and the situational factors that influence their actions. By integrating SCP with script theory, the authors provide a detailed procedural map of terrorist activities, which can help in developing targeted prevention strategies. Overall, the book emphasizes a practical, evidence-based approach to counter-terrorism, highlighting the need for continuous adaptation and learning to effectively combat evolving terrorist threats

Criminal Justice Press, 2009, 244 pages

By  Emily Ann Greene-Colozzi

This dissertation used environmental theoretical frameworks to understand how public mass shooting incidents are impacted by aspects of the crime situation and opportunity. Predatory, public shootings perpetrated by individuals with evidence of mass intent were examined in the United States between 1966 and 2019. This project progressed in several distinct steps with discrete aims: (1) establish an open source database of public mass shooting incidents meeting definitional criteria; (2) perform statistical analysis, including latent class analysis, regression modeling, and structural equational modeling to assess research questions; and (3) perform comparative case studies and crime script analysis to assess situational crime prevention failure or success in eight purposively selected cases. Two research questions, guided by pathway to violence literature, rational choice perspective, and situational crime prevention, were examined: (1) can public mass shooting perpetrators be sorted into meaningful classes according to preparatory and warning signs behaviors?; and (2) how do the built environment and situational guardianship structure of the public mass shooting location influence incident casualties and severity outcomes? Results from this mixed methods study indicate that public mass shooting perpetrators fall into three distinct behavioral classes characterized by different probabilities of warning signs behaviors. Next, there is a protective role of holistic situational crime prevention for mitigating harm of public mass shooting incidents. Protective environmental design exerted a contradictory effect on incident outcomes, mediated by perpetrator and victim behaviors during the shooting. Case studies revealed that failure is often due to human error in implementation of established SCP protocols, rather than a lack of SCP protocols. Implications for prevention and harm mitigation are discussed.

New York: CUNY, 2022. 365p.

By Greg Berman

HFG’s ‘At the Crossroads’ series concludes with the publication of  “Behind the Rise in Gun Violence in New York and Other American Cities,” a compilation of the twelve interviews conducted by Harry Frank Guggenheim Distinguished Fellow of Practice Greg Berman with an essay illuminating common themes and practical approaches to ending such violence.

United States, Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation. 2022, 152pg