Past Tommy Smith, alumnus, American War machine Academy

In that location is a threat in the U.s., often hiding in the shadows, pushing the fringes of what is legal and what is non. This threat bears the proper name "sovereign citizens." Yet in popular news and media, that term is hardly mentioned. More often, the everyday citizen hears well-nigh gangs and extremist groups such as the Bloods, Crips, outlaw motorcycle gangs, MS-xiii, Ku Klux Klan, and diverse other white supremacist sects. For the most part, gangs are more well-known because they are historically violent and organized.

Sovereign citizens, on the other paw, are usually groups of family members or shut friends who share anti-government beliefs. They are rarely connected with other groups from different areas—in other words, they are generally unorganized. Typically, sovereign citizens do non consider themselves part of the United states of america, and therefore believe they are not subjected to paying taxes or adhering to well-nigh laws.

The FBI lists the sovereign citizen movement as an extremist movement, and members of the movement every bit domestic terrorists. The catch is, beingness a sovereign denizen lonely is non a crime, and until a sovereign citizen actually commits a criminal deed, local police enforcement entities legally take no grounds to monitor or rail them.

[Related: How Correctional Officers Tin can Place Sovereign Citizens in the Law Library ]

So, what makes sovereign citizens dangerous? Why should the American people and law enforcement take detect of their presence? In simple terms, the answer to that question is—because what you don't know, Tin injure you.

Why Are Sovereign Citizens Unsafe?

Sovereign citizens are ofttimes known by the moniker "paper terrorists," because they are infamous for using fraudulent currency and filing multitudes of frivolous liens and lawsuits. They often do so using authentic-looking court documents (summons, affidavits, etc.) and target but about anyone, particularly public officials and law enforcement officers they feel have wronged them in some way.

While their moniker of "paper terrorists" does concord true, many sovereigns have their radical beliefs a stride farther and commit tearing acts against police enforcement. Almost 24 years ago, Michael Hill—a homo who identified as a sovereign citizen in Ohio—pulled a gun on a law officer in what, at first, seemed like a routine traffic cease. This detail incident resulted in Hill being fatally shot by the officeholder.

Just two years later the incident with Loma, a sovereign named Carl Drega shot and killed 2 officers and ii civilians in New Hampshire. He then injured two other officers and committed suicide. In 2010, father and son duo Jerry and Joseph Kane were stopped by two officers while running drug interdiction on an interstate in Due west Memphis, Arkansas. Unbeknownst to the officers, the Kanes were sovereign citizens and they had multiple firearms in their vehicle. Sadly, neither officer made it dorsum home to their families that day.

Studies Show Widespread Impact of Sovereign Citizens

Sovereign citizens, whether the violent type or run-of-the-mill "paper terrorists," are a dangerous burden to law enforcement and to the court system. From 2012 to 2013, the Treasury Inspector General estimated there were around 7,000 fraudulent Original Event Disbelieve (OID) filings, predominately from sovereigns. In 2018, the State of New Jersey reported that iii out of six ideologically motivated attacks nationwide were the work of sovereign citizens. Their credo sets the tone for who they pose the most danger to. They run across the Us as a corrupt "corporation" and a "armed forces," and they perceive most law enforcement officers and public officials equally actors in the corrupt corporation.

In a study conducted as part of my chief's thesis in 2019 for American Military University, information showed that out of 20 surveyed constabulary enforcement agencies nationwide, 3 of them reported having a police force enforcement officer killed or assaulted (LEOKA) by a sovereign citizen. The written report besides plant that traffic-related offenses accounted for about all contacts with sovereign citizens. Farther, near all of the agencies surveyed reported that they regularly receive fraudulent documents from sovereign citizens, notwithstanding only seven of the agencies reported that they actually prosecute them for any criminal violation. Alarmingly, even though three agencies reported a LEOKA incident with a sovereign citizen, only two of those agencies provide training on sovereign citizen awareness; overall, merely eleven of the 20 agencies provide training.

What More than Needs to Be Done

Did you know that nigh every state has a designated gang investigator association to train police enforcement on recognizing gangs and prosecuting them? Gangs permeate club, they are fierce, and their methods are widely taught to officers. The spotlight has not been every bit vivid on the topic of sovereign citizens, but that needs to change.

Despite several LEOKA incidents and varying amounts of fraudulent paperwork filed, the justice arrangement notwithstanding has no formalized laws, penalty enhancements, nor standardized training on sovereign citizens. This is apparent as only 8 of the 20 surveyed agencies flag locations in their computer-aided dispatch (CAD) or records management system (RMS) to alert police enforcement officers who respond to calls at addresses of sovereign citizens.

It is imperative that law enforcement agencies across the country recognize sovereign citizens and their propensity for violence so they can take steps to go on themselves and communities prophylactic. For more information about the beliefs of sovereign citizens, how to interact with them, and what indicators to look for when conducting traffic stops, you may view my graduate enquiry document entitled Sovereign Citizens: From Education to Encounter.

sovereignMost the Author: Tommy L. Smith is a Senior Criminal Intelligence Analyst with the Leon Canton (FL) Sheriff's Function where he specializes in Geographic Data Systems (GIS), crime mapping, and Sovereign Citizen identification and monitoring. Collectively, Tommy has 12 years of experience in the criminal justice arena—v in emergency communications and some other seven in crime assay/intelligence analysis. He has a Master'southward Degree in Homeland Security and a Available'due south Degree in Criminal Justice (both with honors), both from American Military University (AMU) and currently serves as an AMU Ambassador. His master'southward thesis, "Sovereign Citizens: The Business," passed with distinction. He is a graduate of the Florida Law Enforcement Annotator Academy and currently holds the post-obit certifications: Certified Law Enforcement Analyst, Gang Specialist, and Outlaw Motorcycle Gang Specialist. Tommy designs websites in his spare fourth dimension and continues to further the brand of the law-breaking/intelligence analyst by serving on the executive board of the Florida Criminal offence & Intelligence Analyst Clan (a not-profit dedicated to educating analysts and revolutionizing their presence in law enforcement).