Washington Fusion Center Newsletters Detail Local Examples of Suspicious Activity Reporting

[The Straight Story]

Washington Fusion Center Newsletters Detail Local Examples of Suspicious Activity Reporting

What kind of “suspicious” behaviors might put you in the sights of your local fusion center? A collection of Fusion Liaison Officer (FLO) reports from the Washington State Fusion Center (WSFC) obtained by police accountability activist Andrew Charles Hendricks via a public records request provide insight into the mechanics of suspicious activity reporting at the local level. More than a dozen reports, which are minimally redacted, detail monthly reporting by the WSFC to its “statewide network of agency-selected law enforcement, fire-fighting and critical infrastructure agency representatives” that ensure “vital disciplines are incorporated into the fusion process by serving as the conduit through which homeland security and crime related information flows to the WSFC for assessment and analysis through the state homeland security Regional Intelligence Groups.” According to the State of Washington, the “end state” of the FLO program “is to have FLOs throughout the state in all aspects of law enforcement, fire service and critical infrastructure” to facilitate the flow of information both to and from the state fusion center.

Though some of the reports contain information that seems to warrant further investigation, many of the reports often concern mundane activities such as photography or the discovery of abandoned items. Here are some examples of “tips and leads” derived from suspicious activity reports sent to the fusion center that are provided in the WSFC FLO Newsletter:

On 26 July 2012 at 1059 hours, caller reported vandalism that occurred on a barge. Caller stated one of the door hatches was open and four padlocks were cutoff the door. An investigation was conducted on the barge, which was moored to a pier during the incident, and nothing was found missing. WSFC Tracking No. TL_2012-07-26T15:02:53 Status: Open

On 11 June 2012 at 0200 hours, adjacent to a refinery regulated area, a security officer observed a vehicle, with two people inside, stopping to pick up two white males that appeared from a nearby ditch. A search of the area around the ditch was conducted and nothing was found. WSFC Tracking No. TL_2012-06-13T13:42:58 Status: Closed

On 30 May 2012 at 0909 hours, a vehicle was observed by Port of Tacoma Security, with an identified male taking photos of the Port of Tacoma Road overpass. The subject was contacted, where he claimed he was taking pictures for his blog. With the subjects permission, photos on the camera were viewed by security and three photos out of many were of the port. The subject was cooperative during contact and said he understood that taking pictures around the port might seem suspicious. WSFC Tracking No. TL_2012-05-30T13:31:37 Status: Closed

On 3 May 2012 at 1330 hours, an abandoned case of luggage was discovered at the Washington State Ferries Colman Dock outside a phone booth in front of a restaurant. The Washington State Patrol was called and the case was searched. Contents included female items and a female Air Force uniform. WSFC Tracking No. TL_2012-05-14T10:41:19 Status Closed

More:
http://publicintelligence.net/wsfc-suspicious-activity-reporting/

[dixiegrrrrl]

1. they are going to smother themselves under a mountain of information.

In their desire to track everything, there will be so many haystacks and so few needles that nothing will be of value, after many hours of futile responses.
Actually, we can help....what would happen if we all reported cars that stopped and picked up people
or big black cars with too heavily tinted windows, parked somewhere with engine running
or
?????????

on edit:

After reading a few of these reports which DO sound like suspicious behavior, I notice they essentially say
" someone was here, looked/acted suspicious and left" with no vehicle tags or any way to trace the person.

[csziggy]

2. They are probably working with algorhithms to sort data

Shades of the TV show Numb3rs!

Safety in Numbers
Mathematics offers innovative weapons for fighting terrorism
By Laura Sanders
Web edition: July 2, 2010
Print edition: July 17, 2010; Vol.178 #2 (p. 18)
On the surface, fighting terrorists with mathematics sounds absurd. Yet some mathematicians and computer scientists are devising equations and algorithms that show real promise as terrorism countermeasures. From simple formulas that focus on mathematical properties underlying terrorist behavior to immense mega-analyses incorporating billions of information bits, mathematics is becoming an increasingly important weapon in the antiterror arsenal.

“The area has exploded, in terms of the types of techniques and technologies,” says computer scientist Kathleen Carley of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. “There are huge, rapid advances in this area with, of course, some very interesting challenges.”

Some researchers, including Carley, are formulating powerful new algorithms that comb through mountains of data and uncover hidden “rules” that govern terrorism behavior. Each tiny electronic crumb — from among billions of cell phone calls, web-browsing records, e-mail messages, credit card receipts and airline manifests — could serve as a microclue to help create a complete picture of a terrorist’s life.

Other researchers, instead of using mountains of data, begin with a molehill, seeking simple, pared-down mathematical formulas that might describe the optimal arrangement of a secret terrorist cell, for instance, and provide hints on how to destroy it.

More: http://www.sciencenews.org/view/feature/id/60711/description/Safety_in_Numbers

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. Fascinating.

[green for victory]

4. maybe if the US stopped drone bombing kids

and overthrowing democratically elected governments

1953 Iranian coup d'état
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1953_Iranian_coup_d%27%C3%A9tat

Maybe not blow Civilian Aircraft out of the sky, in its own airspace

Iran Air Flight 655 was a civilian jet airliner shot down by U.S. missiles on 3 July 1988 as it flew over the Strait of Hormuz at the end of the Iran–Iraq War. The aircraft, an Airbus A300B2-203 operated by Iran Air, was flying from Bandar Abbas, Iran to Dubai, United Arab Emirates. While flying in Iranian airspace over Iran's territorial waters in the Persian Gulf on its usual flight path, it was destroyed by the United States Navy guided missile cruiser USS Vincennes (CG-49).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Air_Flight_655

How about helping to enforce UN Treaties?

Israel pushes forward with new settlements
Israel has pressed forward with the construction of thousands of new homes in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, part of a series of new settlement plans that have drawn worldwide criticism and prompted Palestinian officials to threaten to go to the International Criminal Court.
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/12/201212191395430251.html

These "researchers" are wasting tax dollars treating the symptom rather than the cause.

But that's what the US does these days, with just about everything