U.S. Preparations for Biological Terrorism: Legal Limitations and the Need for Planning

Abstract

This chapter focuses on important legal problems with the domestic preparedness program in the United States. It starts by examining the difficulties of doctrine that are involved with defining a terrorism event. It then explores a subset of terrorism, biological terrorism. Biological terrorism is of concern because it is likely that, given its possible impact and nature, it will impact our present legal system in a singular way. It is concluded that, though it is difficult to figure out which laws apply to terrorism, it is possible to do so; and it is also possible to detect those laws which apply to domestic terrorism.