Threats from Within: An Exploration of Far-Right Law Enforcement Insider Threats

• In Event: Democratic Backsliding and Extremism

Abstract

One of the most concerning characteristics of violent far-right activity in the United States is the prominence of law enforcement perpetrators, often referred to as insider threats. Law enforcement insider threats can pose a hidden threat to public safety and can compromise public trust in law enforcement institutions. Despite growing concern about the involvement of law enforcement in far-right extremism, the characteristics and behaviors of far-right insider threats remain unclear. The current research adopts an exploratory approach in order to contribute to the growing insider threat literature via the utilization of three sources of data. We create a new dataset of incidents involving police officers engaged in far-right violence or illegal activities, as well as a dataset documenting various traits of the relevant perpetrators. We utilize these datasets in order to identify potential trends, which we further investigate by analyzing a series of case studies. The case studies are used to assess the accuracy of identified trends and the degree to which they explain law enforcement engagement in far-right violence. This analysis can be used to develop a novel theoretical framework of far-right insider threats in law enforcement.

Authors

• Tess Hemmila

• Angelica Pugliese, University of Massachusetts Lowell