"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)

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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.
Period16 Jul 202418 Jul 2024
Event typeConference
LocationSt Andrews, United KingdomShow on map
Degree of RecognitionInternational

Keywords

  • terrorism
  • terrorist prisoners
  • recidivism
  • re-offending
  • reconviction
  • violent extremism
  • risk assessment