Since the terrorist attacks against the United States onSeptember 11, 2001, there has been a real push in local law enforcementagencies—especially large ones—to incorporate intelligence-led policingtechniques.

A part of that strategy has been the creation of fusioncenters in all fifty states intended to facilitate the sharing of policeintelligence information between federal, state, and local agencies.Consider the Lambert (2010) article, "Intelligence-Led Policing in aFusion Center" and the "US Government Accountability Office (GAO) Reporton Fusion Centers" in the Community Policing .

The creation of fusion centers and their operations havenot been without controversy. Many civil libertarians have expressedconcern that instead of focusing only on real threats, fusion centersencourage the government's suspicion toward law-abiding citizens andgroups that are suspected of potential hostility toward government.

Tasks:

Write a 4- to 6-page paper. In the paper:

• Take a definitive stand and provide justifications for, or against, the use of fusion centers as a local law enforcement tool.
• Examine how these centers may be abused to violate citizen rights.
• Compare and contrast the cooperationthat occurs through fusion centers and that through other kinds ofmultiagency activities, such as task forces and joint investigations.
• Identify and evaluate the possible steps or policies to minimize concerns that some have raised about potential abuses.

Feel free to do additional research on the topic offusion centers, beyond the reading that has been assigned to furtherimprove your paper.