NCJ Number
119014
Date Published
1985
Length
142 pages
Annotation
This study examines both law and practice regarding the apprehension, prosecution, and punishment of terrorists.
Abstract
The study first considers the legal framework of the process. entails a review of treaties (global, regional, and bilateral); declarations of the United Nations and other international bodies; customary rules of international law; U.S. statutes, court decisions, and regulations; and statutes, court decisions, and regulations of selected foreign countries. The study then examines, to the extent data are available, State practice in countering terrorism. This encompasses methods States use to return terrorists to the locales where they have allegedly committed their crimes, including formal extradition, exclusion, and deportation, as well as illegal abduction and seizure. The study then explores the extent to which States have prosecuted and punished international terrorists. The final section presents conclusions and recommendations regarding law and practice. Extradition is considered, along with changes that might be made in U.S. law and practice and international initiatives. Deportation and exclusion under U.S. law and foreign law and practice are examined, as well as the possibility that a common standard for legal methods of rendition might be developed and incorporated into appropriate international legal instruments. Possible reforms in international judicial assistance in criminal matters are assessed, and the problem posed by safe-haven States is briefly considered. 4 tables, chapter notes, subject index.