Chris Georgalis was interviewed by cleveland.com reporter Evan MacDonald to provide insight on the recent federal arrest of a man accused of plotting a terrorist attack on the Fourth of July fireworks celebration in Cleveland. The article provides:
“‘What made the case unique is that it presented investigators with a deadline to make their case, the Fourth of July holiday,’ said Cleveland attorney Chris Georgalis, a former federal prosecutor who has worked on terrorism cases. ‘There will always be a sense of urgency if you’re dealing with an attack that could happen in days or weeks,’ Georgalis said. ‘You don’t have the luxury of waiting around to build a case. You’re on a separate timeline.'”
“Investigators consider a suspect’s criminal history, their potential access to weapons and the nature of the rhetoric they use to determine if a suspect is a legitimate threat.
“‘It’s more of an art than a science,’ Georgalis said. ‘You want to make sure you have access to enough admissible evidence that you can use against the individual in court. That’s obviously key.'”
“Both [U.S. Attorney] Herdman and Georgalis said investigators take careful steps to make sure they are collecting evidence in a careful way, so as to ensure a conviction. But they acknowledged that, if a threat becomes too prominent, investigators will move in to make an arrest before an attack can be carried out.” Read the full article here.