Counter Terrorism Unit

The official seal of the Counter Terrorism Unit.

*"There is a need for something unorthodox. Conventional is what will kill us, and subsequently the nation." -* Director Richard Halland to the Defense Committee

The **Counter Terrorism Unit,** or simply known as CTU, is a classified organization under the direct supervision of the Department of Homeland Security which is spread across all 50 states.

Led by a Director, generally from a law-enforcement or military background, each Unit is compromised of civilian employees with different skillsets, alongside a complement of Field and Support Agents. These Agents are the backbone of each Counter Terrorism Unit and are the leading force in upholding the CTU's primary directive: To eliminate domestic terrorism and bring order, justice and stability to the state and her people. The CTU in it by itself is not an elite group in the traditional military sense, but rather a special collective of highly trained civilians embedded in society. Unlike military units, CTUs do not deploy their Agents for extended periods of time, nor do they train like conventional military units. The members of each Counter Terrorism Unit is what makes it unique. Officially, all employees are counted as federal and state agents, in direct service to their home state and subsequently the United States federal government.

The Unit's motto is: *Primum in Ignis* (Literal translation is "*First in the Fire"*.).

## Origins

In January 6th, 2021, former President Donald Trump rallied his supporters to stop Congress from formalizing President-elect Joe Biden's victory. Thousands of Trump's supporters rallied outside the Capitol Building. At least five civilian casualties were incurred, including one shot by Capitol Police. Considered a domestic terrorism attack, Trump supporters breached and infiltrated the Capitol Building, overwhelming Capitol Police.

After the events of January 6th, several congressional committees to include the Department of Homeland Security sought to prevent a domestic terrorism threat happening again. However, in the years to follow, the United States was plagued by mass shootings, and pockets of small attacks against state infrastructure.

Notable events include:

* 2018 Fear No One Elite City shooting
* May 24th, 2022 Robb Elementary school shooting
* December 3rd, 2022 Washington DC power grid attack

The level of violence in the United States was unprecedented and this had only increased with the creation of the smart city, Elite City. Crime families were rampant across the state of Virginia and Maryland and throughout President Biden's term, pockets of violence in several states denouncing his presidency gained the attention of the DHS even further.

On December 3rd, 2022, domestic terrorists disrupted the Washington D.C. power gird, leaving thousands without power. Riots and chaos ensued and for almost a week, Washington D.C. was besieged by her own citizens. A special police unit from D.C. Metro, led by Saul Eckhart, repelled rioters from breaching a perimeter, until an explosion took Saul and his team out, incapacitating them. The actions of D.C. Metro's most trained officers sparked the idea of a counter terrorism unit in Richard Halland.

## Creation of the Unit

In January 2023, Richard Halland who was working for FEMA at the time, approached the Secretary of Homeland Security about his idea of a nationwide counter terrorism unit. A memorandum was presented to the President and the National Defense Committee. The memo read:

*As an American, a public servant and a former police officer, I have never seen an unprecedented level of violence in our great nation. In the recent years, we have done nothing to help the American people feel safe in a country where we can walk freely without looking over our shoulders, or without having to worry about our children losing their lives on a Monday morning.*

*Domestic terrorism is now the new war. We have focused so much overseas in Afghanistan, in Taiwan, in Ukraine, that we have neglected our own country and have allowed chaos to flourish under our watch. This is the worst of bad news that one can receive. However, the one thing this country has that no other country is the belief of a better tomorrow. But we can no longer simply hope. We must take action. We must fight fire with fire.*

*The solution to this problem, simply put, is to create a nationwide counter terrorism unit, compromised of America's best, under the direct supervision of the Department of Homeland Security. I further propose each state have their own CTU. The reasons for this are simple:*

* *Each unit will be tailor made by the civilians recruited by the Directors I appoint, making them versatile and agile in their communities.*
* *The need for a unit in each state will lower the level of threats, whether it be foreign or domestic.*
* *The Department of Homeland Security's budget has increased ten fold and would be better suited to fund the creation and operations of the CTUs.*
* *The Department of Homeland Security's agencies, such as FEMA and CISA, can support the CTUs.*
* *Local law enforcement can support and assist CTUs in their operations against domestic terrorism.*

*For all these reasons, the proposed next level of counter terrorism, with full support of national and state governments, that the creation of the Counter Terrorism Unit is paramount to our freedom.*