A new Syracuse University study shows that prosecutions of “international terrorism” have been fizzling out in US courts. Since 9/11, 184 people have been convicted of “international terrorism” related crimes, but defendants were sentenced to an average prison term of just 14 days. The number of people sentenced to five or more years in prison for terrorism-related crimes actually declined in the two years after 9/11 compared with the previous two years. However, the study notes that many cases are still pending and more serious cases tend to take longer to prosecute. [Los Angeles Times, 12/9/2003]
May 27, 2007: Group: Terrorism Not Focus of Homeland Security
The Transactional Records Action Clearinghouse (TRAC), a data research organization affiliated with Syracuse University, has discovered that terrorism claims formed less that 0.01 percent of immigration court charges filed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The immigration court records were obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. Of 814,073 cases brought to the immigration courts by the DHS, 12, or 0.0015 percent, were for charges of terrorism. In addition, 114 cases, or 0.014 percent, concerned individuals charged with national security violations. TRAC spokesman David Burnham says, “The DHS claims it is focused on terrorism. Well that’s just not true. Either there’s no terrorism, or they’re terrible at catching them. Either way it’s bad for all of us.” TRAC further claims that there exists an “apparent gap between DHS rhetoric about its role in fighting terrorism and what it actually has been doing.” DHS spokesman Russ Knocke calls the TRAC report “ill-conceived” and said the group “lack[s] a grasp of the DHS mission.” The DHS claims that any clampdown on immigration decreases the likelihood of terrorists entering the US. [CNN, 5/27/2007]
