"The Unrepentant: Characteristics and Profiles of Convicted Terrorist Offenders who Re-offend after Release From Prison." Paper presented at the International Behavioural and Social Sciences in Security Conference (BASS24)
Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Participation in conference
Description
International statistics show that the majority of offenders convicted of terrorism-related crimes do not re-offend after release from prison. The minority who do re-offend, however, can be involved in highly serious offences. Our current understanding of these recidivists is very limited. This research draws on an analysis of a database of 48 offenders convicted of terrorism-related offences who committed further terrorism-related offences after their release from prison. The database draws on a range of countries, with the majority of cases coming from the UK, but also including cases from New Zealand, Germany, France, and Austria. The released prisoners came from a variety of ideological backgrounds including Islamist extremists, far right extremists, and nationalist-separatist terrorists. Patterns and trends in these cases are examined including assessment of the time to re-offend after release and whether re-offending represented an escalation or reduction in seriousness compared to original conviction offences. Implications in terms of research, risk assessment and policy are discussed.