Content area
Full text
Introduction
It has been widely argued that the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 revealed critical deficits in our nation's homeland defense strategy. Specifically, failure to thwart the attacks using available information has been interpreted as indicating a need for a more comprehensive and strategic coordination of intelligence ([22] Kobach, 2006). Intelligence-led policing (ILP) has been widely advocated as one possible method of overcoming the problems of intelligence sharing and coordination in a post-9/11 world ([36] Ratcliffe, 2008; [8] Cordner and Scarborough, 2010; [4] Carter, 2003; [5] Carter and Carter, 2009).
[36] Ratcliffe (2008) proposes that ILP is a business model and managerial philosophy. Central to ILP is the utilization of analyzed intelligence to guide decision making and coordination of resources to disrupt and prevent both crime and terrorist threats. Theoretically, this method of policing allows for agencies to more efficiently and strategically target offenders and broader threats through information and intelligence coordinated across agency contexts and with community resources. As such, the principles of ILP identified by [36] Ratcliffe (2008) and others ([4] Carter, 2003; [5] Carter and Carter, 2009; [26] McGarrell et al. , 2007) have a strong correspondence with the goals and challenges of post-9/11 policing. Given this, many have advocated the adoption of ILP, poising it for broad diffusion throughout law enforcement.
Although there is ample evidence that institutional practices within law enforcement have changed in response to homeland security concerns ([31] Oliver, 2006; [28] Mastrofski and Willis, 2010), the degree to which ILP has diffused into the organizational practices of law enforcement since 9/11 is a lingering question. Many policies and grants have been directed toward improving homeland security preparedness among state and local law enforcement agencies ([34] Randoll, 2011); however, there have been very few empirical studies of how these mandates and resources have affected organizational change subsequent to 9/11 ([33] Pelfrey, 2007; [34] Randoll, 2011). Available studies focus primarily on what factors correlate with efforts to engage in homeland security preparedness, but only provide a limited examination of intelligence and related functions. To date, no study has assessed the degree to which agencies have institutionalized practices consistent with the principles of ILP.
Given the emergent concerns surrounding homeland security and the proposed benefits of ILP, it is important...