Managing extremist offenders: The TACT-ics of policing thought?

In: Probation journal: the journal of community and criminal justice, Band 62, Heft 2, S. 172-180

Abstract

Working with people convicted of extremist offences who have either offended, or are perceived to have offended, for ideological reasons − whether supportive of a political or religious identity or for the rights of animals − presents challenges to the supervising probation officer. Despite it being impossible for a service user to prove categorically that they are no longer supportive of ideological views that advocate harmful behaviour, there can still be an expectation from offender managers, MAPPAs, Parole Boards and offenders themselves, that evaluating enduring sympathies with harmful groups forms the main part of risk and offender management. How then can service users and probation staff work productively together, without an offender manager being excessively naive or collusive, or the offender receiving supervision reliant on disproportionate, and possibly counter-productive, levels of control?