Mati Blunl

Governot

Ma* S. James
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Direclot. DPS

MIAC BULLETIN
Leaderless Resistance
February 26, zooa

The concepl of "leaderless resislance sudaces lrom time to lime among various "resistance" groups who
foresee a futlre period ol anarchy, or believe they are at war with lhe governmenl oi the United Slates.
Al iis essence, it consisls of either individuals or small groups acting in accordance wiih the goals ol a
movemenl or organization, but wjth few or no plausjble or exploitable lres with others who may also be
particjpating in the movement.

Ulius L. Amoss

There is nol a greal deal ol inJormation available on the man generally credited with
crealing the concept ol Jeaderiess resistance- Uiius Amoss served with iniormalion and
intelligence services for the U.S. Army in WorJd War ll, and aJter the war went to work
tor the Office of Stiategic Services (O.S.S.), the U.S- entity thai was heavily involved
with clandesline operaiions during the war and was ihe predecessor oJ the Central ln'

W
lelligence Agency.

During his years with the OSS and, Ialer, lhe ClA, Amoss is recognrzed wilh creating an
alternative to traditional hierarchical resrstance movements, consisling of resilienl cells
wjth no discernibie outside chain oi command and known as "phanlom cells."

Louis Beam

A Vjetnam War veteran, Louis Beam reiurned to the United States and ioined the
United Klans oi America. During.lhe 1970s, Beam joined David Duke's Knights ol
the K! KIux Klan (KKKK), and made altempls to recruit Amerjcan servicemen
irom For-l Hood, Texas. For the remainder oi the decade, Beam moved up the
ranks oi the KKKK, teaching feiiow Klansmen gue(illa war tactics and taking pan
in anti-Vietnamese activilies as a resull ol disputes between native tjshermen and
Vielnamese retugees who fished tbe same waters.

Slarting in the 1 980s, Beam joined the Aryan Nalions, working with thal organiza'
tion's leadership in ldaho. ln 1983, Beam wrote an article on Leaderjess Besis-
tance thal sets out gujdelines ior a resistance movemenl drastically ditlerenl lrom
its historical predecessors.

Tenets ahd Principles of Leaderless Besistance

Buildjng on Beam's slatemenl thal "lhis author lears the ledera governmenl, lhe article begins wilh a de-
scriptjonofhlsviewoiresistanceagainsllederaloppression.'ThecrackdownonilJegalactivitiesperpe_
irated by extremisl gloups, and the resulianl imprjsonmenl ol many high_ranking leaders ol such organi-
zalions, provides evrdence for Beam thal a lyplcal hierarchica organizational slructure is nol only ineffi'
cienl bul can be used againsl the group. Whether through coercion of imprisoned members or deiection
ol others to law enforcemenl, an entire orqanization s membership and conneclions can be quickly ex'
posed.
 lnBeam'sview,Amoss'sworkandtheoriesprovidethebasisiorasolllronlolhisproblem. Caliinghis
meihod the'cell syslem," Beam compares i1 lo ihe "Committees 01 Correspondence" sel up by the colo'
nies in the early days ol Anerica's bid for independence. Also known as phaniom cells" or leaderless
resisiance, !nder ihis concepl "al individuals and groups operate independenlly oi each olher, and never
report to a cental headquariers or s nqle leader ior direction or instuction, as wo!ld those who belong 10
atypicalpyramidorganjzation."'zFesponsibilityfortraining,planning,andaclionisplacedontheindivid-
ual. if 1983, Beam called for inlormation distributjon via newspapers, leaflels and compulers. Ilodern
day practitroners ot /eaderless resjstanoe rely aimost exclusively on compulers and the iniernet, as dem-
onstated by tbe sheer volume oi websites dedrcaled 10 exilemisl groups and ideology.

Beam staled again and again that adhering lo haditional pyramid organizational sfuctures only serves lo
assist the federal governmenl in their work oi letreting out such organizations. As Beam makes only too
ciear, [a] single penetialion 01 a pyramid type ol organization can lead to the destruction ol the whole.
Whereas LeaderlessResistancepresenlsnosingleopporiunilyiortheFederalstodesiroyaslgnilicant
porlion ol lhe Resrstance.""

Dahger of Leaderless Resistance

Leaderless Resistance is, in many ways, dangerous lor the very reasons thal people like Louis Beam
promote il. lt provides a high degree 01 inherenl operational security for those who striclly follow its ien'
ets- One document, wrillen by White Aryan Besistance Jounder Tom Metzger and provlding the "Laws of
the Lone Woll," calls for adherents to "lnl ever utler more lhan the 5 Words to any agent or representative
ot ZOG lzionisl Occupalion Governmentl: I Have Nolhing To Say.' There are no exceptions. Anyone
who does talk must be shlnned irom the movemenl Jorever.' Metzger goes of to call for even harsher
measures: "Former associates oi the talker may consider much harshet punishnent."4

Transnalional tetrorisl groups slch as al-Qaeda have, since lhe 9-'11 altacks,
had difticllty placing operatives in the Uniied States. As most ol these opera-
tives were not born and raised in the United States, ihey lend to work coopera_
lively with others with the same plans, making it easier tor law enforcemett to
find ihem. Another danger ol LeaderJess Resistance is the abil:ty of extremjst
groups to'remotely' inspire disaffecled or radjcalized individuals already iiving in
rne Ulireo Sraies. A.read) possessing a legrlrnale place ir lhe socrety. lhese r'_
dvouars are less p'one lo d.scovery,t Tne g.oup spreaorng Ine nessagp sees
its cause Jorwarded al ljttle or no expense or danger io itsell and can even main_
tain plausible deniability of the motivated agent, as there is littie or no direct cof-
lacl between the two. ln some instances there is no contacl al all. Ailer a Jew_ &
ish Amencan murdered 29 Musljms in the Wesl Bank in February 1 994, Rashid Ha
Timothy Mcveigh
and Palestinlan descent, killed one and injured several
olner Orr'odo) Jews as rhey raveled across lhp B'oohlyl Bnoge.6 A weer ano a
half after the shooting, HAlv4AS issued a stalement praising Bazs actions.' in this case there was no
contact at all between the lerorisl group and one who acled in a way thal turthered the terorists' cause.

Examples of Leaderless Resistance

Two ol the mosl noted recenl exampies of the "lone wolf" are Timothy l\lcvejgh
and Tefiy Nichols, architecls oi ihe bomblng ol the Mutrah Federal Building jn
Oklahoma Ciiy, Oklahoma on April 19, 1995. Bolh had previous conneciions 10
miljt a groups, but their speci{ic actions were disconnected from any particuiar
group allowing for a higher degree ol secrecy in iheir plannjng and preparaiion.
An additional case is thal ol Eric B!dolph, bomber of abortion clinlcs and the
1 99b Ar.anta Olynpics. wro nao lormer assoc,arions wrlf lhe Chnsltan ldenlil\
movemetr o Aqain, TanyqroLps wiln tl_'e sane ideology oeneriled Iom lhese
alrachs. whi,e ar l-e same Iine oerlo able Io 'JlhiLlly mailtal lhel own ilno

Extremisl anima rights advocales and radical environmenlalists are some ol the
more outspoken advocales of leaderless resislance. Arson commitled a1 building
sjtes and animal research laboraiodes, as weil as improvised incendiary device
Eric Rudolph
attacks againsl luxury SUVs, are olten perpelraled by persons wilh a hjgh degree 0l
afllnity lor the beJiels ol radical organizattons, bui with litlle or no aclual connection
 lo them. According to an assessmeni written tor the Depaftment ol Homeland Seclrity, '[tihe ELF JEarth
Liberalion Fronll websile instucls indrvid!als who are interesled in joining to avoid existing cells, eslab'
ijsh their own cells, and proclaim membershrp rn ELF ailer allacking the property 01 an appropriate largel.
This process serves to resisl inlillrallor and atres1. 'o The Anima/ Liberation Fronl has similar guidelines,
allowing'any group of people who are vegelarians oI vegans and who catry oul actions according to ALF
guideli;es hav; the rigirt to regard thems;lves as parl of the ALF."1r

lmplications for Missouri

Leaderless resjstance poses a numbeT of issues for N4isso!rl.

Those who choose lo ac1 as lone wolves make the work ol
law entorcement more challenging. A limiled number ol con'
spirators and iew, ji any, links lo larger organizalions lessens
the likelihood of an inveslrgalor iinding oul inlormation on a
plot.

Both Timolhy N,4cveigh and Eric Budolph had ties to glolps

wjth white supremacisl jdeologies in Missouri prior lo their in
tamous aclions. The additlonal danger posed by those in-
spired by leaderless resistance is the risk ol fudher radicali_
zatjon. Asstrangeasilmaysound,departingiromestablishedradicalorganizalionscanleadtoaneven
grealer polarjzation of beliefs, as there is no group to periorm the role of moderaling views or policies.

Remote, sparsely populated areas of Missouri attract those seeking isolation and privacy, arguably in-
cluding those who would use that isoialion and privacy lor the planning and preparation ol ione woll at
tacks.

it is interesting to note thal a,though Beam's trealise on Leaderless Resistance calis tor the iormation ol
cells independent 01 any structured parent group, in most, if not all cases, human nature wilJ intervene
and a leader will emerge within a cell. Without fail, withjn any extremisvsubversive organizalion, there is
a core of ultra-extremists linked by several lactors, the most imponant of whjch is the desire and need to
take some sort ol action. lvlany times, lhis core ol ultra-exiremists is not known to the general member
ship. ln almosi all cases however, this smali cell is known 10'the leadership 01 the parent organizatjon not
necessarily because they sanction the cells, bul beca!se they are a threat to the overall well being of the
parent Oroup and pose a threat to ihe allhority and leadership oJ the larger group A number of other 1ac_
tors may iniluence the viability of lnderground ceJls: The "Better Haif" lactor has been observed in a
nunber oi cell groups. Individuaily, the "leadership" lacks either psychological traits or technical skill thal
wouid provide the impetus Jor the celi to take action. A complimentary figure may emerge who provides
that companionship, psychologjcal trait, skiil, or ambition that makes the two individuals become one
slrong entity, and the cell becones capable and more active. Sheer physical energy and genuine military
prowess/experience will also gel a unit. ln mosl cases, these lalents are immediately recognized by oth-
ers and like it or not, that indivjduai becomes a deJacto leader, in some cases an objeci of worshjp for the
others. With these facis jn mind, how does law enforcemenl detect, monilor, and disrupl the planned ac'
tivilies of a cell group or lone woll?
The MIAC requests ieedback on this producl (email miac@mshp.dps.mo.9ov) as well as suggestions on
topics ot inleresl to the Missouri law enlorcemenl community thal may be ulilized for iuture products

rLouis 992. page

Beam,'I-eaderless Resistance," in Tr. Sedrioillrl. hsue 12, February I 1

rtb;a., p.
3.
'ttia.,p. +
rTon accessed September 7 2007, at htt!://wws"whitehonor'con/lonelaws.htn
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T,Anspoiladon Secutty Adnlinistradon Olfice oflnlelliSence, "Speculntive ADalysis: Tie Terrorist Cell olthe Fu-
ture," l3 September2007. 5.
rFedemlBur€auofInvestigadonLilelligenceAssessnenl,'TheThrcalPosedbyLoDeWolfTeroristsSvnpathetic
10 the Prlestinian Cause," I I January 2007,5.
tbid..8.
I
Mark Polok, "Eric Rudolph, atL^s|" lntatlireilt? 1l?r,1- Suilrnrer 2003.
ll4ike German. tsehind the LoDe Terrcrj$, a I'ack woshrlSton Prt. -5 June 2005, B0l.
r
Tercrisn Analysis GlouP, 'Universnl Adve$ary Order of
Applied Mariie Technolog), lnc s lDtelljSence and^4cnt^I;rl,''
Batlle: Ecoteilorism," I Apdl 2006.4.
lbirl.
i
KathleeD Pucker, 'Lone Wolf Study,'' Ioverpoin( presertatjon, HSIN Snte and Local lntelh!ence,
htps://ct-i.jes.dhs.gov/sites/SLIP3/detanll.aspx, accessed 7 Novenrbc' 2007.