The West Old & New November Vol. II Issue XI | Page 5

Shannen Rossmiller has been written about in the New York Times, Washington Post, the L.A. Times, the Philadelphia Inquire and by Evan Moore, Editor and Publisher of the Bosque county News of Meridian, Texas. Moore wrote one of the first stories about this Montana woman and met her when he was a reporter for the Houston Chronicle in July of 2004. Moore writes that
at the time Rossmiller was an anomaly, an unknown quantity who might or might not have been lucky in catching one would-be
terrorists. Today with more than 200 cases to her credit she has become an accomplished sleuth and an acknowledged American
hero.
Currently Shannen Rossmiller is an American lecturer and instructor in cyber counter-intelligence forensics. A former high
school cheerleader, paralegal, and a mother of three, Rossmiller posed online as militant anti-American Muslim radicals to attract
the eye of those with similar mindsets.
In an article she wrote for an online newspaper she states, “In November 2001, I saw a news report about how terrorists and
their sympathizers communicated on websites and Internet message boards and how limited government agencies were in their
ability to monitor these web communications. This news report showed me how extensively Al-Qaeda used the Internet to orchestrate 9-11 and how out of touch our intelligence agencies were regarding this Internet activity. Apparently, there were not procedures in place for tracking communications and activity on the Al-Qaeda websites and Internet forums at the time. The Internet
address named in the news report was "www.alneda.com." I wrote it down and proceeded to see for myself what all the fuss was
about. I entered another world when I logged on to that site for the first time. I did not know Arabic, so I clicked away at random,
looking at featured pictures depicting such things as dead bodies lying around in the aftermath of a car bombing and other atrocities.”
The events of 9/11 changed her life forever just like it did a lot of people but in a way that she would have never considered.
Shannen Rossmiller was thirty four years old on September 11, 2001, a mother of three and the municipal judge in Conrad, Montana.
The evening of 9/11 Rossmiller fell in the shower of her bathroom and broke her pelvis. Confined to bed for the next six
weeks she watched the consequences of the 9/11 events. Rossmiller began the web. Unable to decipher the language on these sites
she began studying Arabic, taking two courses and immersing herself in the language until she felt fluent enough to write it. She
studied the Koran and searched the web for addresses of mosques and clerics to make her references authentic, for the profile she
created for herself as a Muslim man who was intent on killing Americans. Her online presence was to search for assistance from
others who were sympathetic to his cause.
Rossmiller visited chat rooms on the internet b ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????5?????????)M???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????A??????????????????????????????)???????M?????????????????????????)I????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????I??????????????????????????????????????????)??? $???????????????????????????????????????????????I??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????M????????????????????I?????????????????????%???M????????????????????????????????????)???????????????????????????????]???????????????????????I?????M?????????)%??)??????????I??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????M??????!???????M??????????????????5?????? $????????)%??=?????????I??????????????????????????????????????????????????????I???????????????????????????????)?????????????????????????????????????????????I?????????????????????????I???????????????????)???9??????????M????????????????5????????????????I??????????????????? $????????M?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????)Q????????????????????????I??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????5????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????)U????????I?????????????????????????????????????????????????)????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????Q????????????????????I????????????????????????????E?????????????)??????????????????????????M???????
?????????????????????????????Q???????????????????????????????????????????????(???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????I?????????????????????????????M??????)????????????????????)%??????I?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????Q????????????????????????????????Q????????????????????????5???????
????)I???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????)%??????????????????? $??????????I??????????????????????????I??????????????????????????%??????????????)???)????????I???????????????????????????????????)I????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????) $??=??=????????????I?????????????????????????????????????????????????E?????????????????????????????)????????????????????????????????????????????????)%?????? $??????????????I????????????????????????????5??????????????????????AL??????????????????)???????????????????????????????????Q??????????????????
?????????????????????????????????5???????Q????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????I??????????????)I????????????????????????????????????????????5????????????????????A?????????Q???]???=?????9??A?????((0