The U.S. Marshals Service Law Enforcement and Policing - Coursework Example

The U.S. Marshals Service Law Enforcement and Policing This paper explores the many facets of the U.S. Marshal Service as a local law enforcement agency. This includes a summary of all published information found in U.S. Marshals’ official website and in other related web articles. Some of the specific points detailed in this report concern the agency’s nature of work, organizational structure, police positions, recruitment and training processes, hazards, implementation of policies and the challenges that the agency faces habitually. The main objective of the paper is to inform the readers what the agency is about and how the people move inside and work, as both are significant for the state’s security. It also aims to present facts that would help people from different nations compare USMS to their own local law enforcement agency, thus providing a venue for process and implementation enhancements. All the details discussed in this research paper are contained in the basic information provided in USMS’s official website, and doesn’t expose any confidential data. The U.S. Marshals Service Law Enforcement The U.S. Marshals Service is the nation’s oldest and most versatile federal law enforcement agency. The Marshals Service occupies a uniquely central position in the federal justice system. It is the enforcement arm of the federal courts, involved in virtually every federal law enforcement initiative. “US Marshals occupy a uniquely central position in the federal justice system. Presidentially appointed U.S. Marshals direct the activities of 94 districts — one for each federal judicial district” (U.S. Marshals Service website, 2011). With its headquarters across the Potomac River, the agency comprises of 3,950 deputy marshals and criminal investigators. “Among their many duties, they protect the federal judiciary, apprehend federal fugitives, seize property acquired by criminals through illegal activities, house and transport federal prisoners and operate the Witness Security Program” (U.S. Marshals Service website, 2011). Organizational Structure Created on September 24, 1789, the Office of the US Marshals is spearheaded by the Director, who also takes over the work for the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity. Right under the Director is the Deputy Director who handles the Office of General Counsel, Office of Inspections and Office of Communications (Justice.gov manual, 2007). Next in the structure are the Associate Directors for Administration and Operations who manage the rest of the divisions namely: human resources, training, information technology, management support, financial services, asset forfeiture, judicial security, investigative operations, witness security, justice prisoner and alien transportation system, tactical operations and prisoner operations. In line with these associate directors, finally, are the 94 U.S. Marshals. Such organizational structure was approved by Alberto R. Gonzales, Attorney General, in 2007 (Justice.gov manual, 2007). The main duty of USMS as an agency is to help smooth the progress of the federal judiciary system of the US. Together with this, the marshals are expected to carry out the following: Apprehending fugitives - US Marshals work with federal, state and local authorities to apprehend and arrest fugitives. According to the US Marshal Service, US Marshals arrested more than 36,600 federal fugitive felons, clearing 39,700 federal felony warrants last year – more than all other law enforcement agencies combined (About.com Legal Careers, 2012). Transporting and managing prisoners - Managed by the US Marshals Service, the Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System (JPATS) is one of the largest transporters of prisoners in the world — handling more than 1,000 requests every day to move prisoners between judicial districts, correctional institutions and foreign countries (About.com Legal Careers, 2012). Protecting members of the federal judiciary - US Marshals ensure the safe and secure conduct of judicial proceedings and protect federal judges, jurors and other members of the federal judiciary (About.com Legal Careers, 2012). Managing and selling assets - Under the Department of Justices Asset Forfeiture Program, the US Marshals Service manages and disposes of properties seized and forfeited by federal law enforcement agencies and U.S. attorneys nationwide in federal criminal investigations (About.com Legal Careers, 2012) Protecting federal witnesses - The US Marshals Service provides 24-hour protection to all witnesses while they are in a high threat environment, including pre-trial conferences, trial testimonials and other court appearances (About.com Legal Careers, 2012). Serving court documents - US Marshals and their deputies are authorized to execute federal court civil and criminal process through a subpoena, summons, writ of habeas corpus, warrant or other means (About.com Legal Careers, 2012). Recruitment and Training Programs Following the new trends in technology, part of the recruitment process in USMS is now done through job postings online, specifically in the USAJOBS website. For instance, specifically for the Deputy U.S. Marshal position, a series of competitive examinations must first be accomplished together with an interview before formal hiring. “All applicants will be initially evaluated for the DUSM position based on their ability to meet the established minimum qualifications. The candidates that meet these minimum qualifications will be scheduled for the two-part OPM examination. Upon successful completion of the exam, applicants will be scheduled for the structured interview process. Categorical ranking will be used to determine a candidates’ eligibility for selection as part of this announcement. The entire evaluation process may take as long as 10-12 months to complete” (U.S. Marshals Service website, 2011). The recruitment is done nationwide, and hiring will be based on the regions where the applicants choose to reside at the time of their application. Their chosen regions will become their designated duty stations once appointed. As for training, USMS has built its Basic Training Academy that “is conducted at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), in Glynco, GA. Glynco is located near Brunswick, Georgia, mid-way between Savannah, Georgia and Jacksonville, Florida.” However, not all applicants can register for such training by just showing up. They must be able to pass a physical fitness test given by the personnel six months prior to the training schedule. This is to make sure that everyone who enters the training is in good condition and could handle the intensity of the activities to be performed. Only those who will be called up by USMS can attend the training. The applicants will be grouped into Basic Deputy Classes, with Academy Instructors assigned to each for proper facilitation and monitoring. Uniforms will also be provided by FLETC to the trainees. In the training proper, the activities will cover a diverse set of subjects namely (U.S. Marshals Service website, 2011): Legal Training Defensive Tactics Driver Training Courtroom Evidence Court Security Officer Survival Search and Seizure Protective Service Training Firearms Training Physical Conditioning First Aid Prisoner Search & Restraint Computer Training Building Entry & Search High Threat Trials Surveillance (U Exams are also conducted throughout the training. The applicants must be able to complete a total of seven exams, and must pass each of them with a minimum of at least 70%. Additional practice exercises will also be given to them to gauge their understanding of the concept lectures. (U.S. Marshals Service website, 2011) Meals and dormitory housing are generously provided throughout the applicants’ stay. They are also given the privilege to drive their personal vehicles to the academy, but only during non-training hours. Academy buses also operate regularly to transport students from one school building or community center to another. Lastly, family visitation privileges are also given to each trainee. (U.S. Marshals Service website, 2011) One of the programs of the said academy called the ENVISAGE. Such program was specially designed to enhance the Academy’s training management system. “..ENVISAGE was chosen to provide expert advice in the areas of training academy automation, business process evaluation and re-engineering. Findings were documented in detail and best practice recommendations outlined thus providing a solution roadmap for the USMS Training Academy” (Envisagetech Files Wordpresss, 2011). As evaluated by clients, the ENVISAGE project has provided improvements in the quality of USMS’ services specifically in training implementation, project planning and budget formulation. This is only one of the best practices that the agency has come up with over the years. Issues and Challenges Apart from the basic hazards of working as a marshal, such as the dangers posted to their physical and mental health, there are other factors that threaten them and put their jobs at stake. News published about USMS is their arrest of a man named Jeremy Lee Lewis, who had outstanding warrants on robbery and kidnapping. When Lewis was apprehended by the marshals together with the High Point police, the suspect had dangerous weapons at hand. “At the time of his arrest, authorities said Lewis was in possession of a loaded chrome plated Jennings .22 caliber pistol” (myfox8.com, 2012). Fortunately though, the skills of the marshals and police were only enough to stop him. Several trainings and experience help marshals face dangerous encounters like this. For USMS, hands-on works with real-life criminal offenders in correctional facilities are being completed for practice before they can even be brought to the actual scenes. As they say, a combination of education and experience help authorities pulls the job off. Similarly, one more issue has brought the U.S. Marshals Service to different heights of controversy, an issue that involves one of their most basic lines of work: prisoner management. It is the job of the agency to house and transport all federal prisoners from the time they are taken into federal custody, until they are transported to the respective prisoner facilities. And, this is regardless of where or what agency made the actual arrest (U.S. Marshals Service website, 2011). This duty of USMS brings a huge amount of complexity to their already bulky scope of work. In detaining federal prisoners, the marshals are in charge of the following: Taking DNA samples of individuals arrested by the Marshals for an FBI database Managing prisoners with terminal illnesses and contagious diseases Deciding whether to grant the transfer of prisoners to state or local authorities when ordered through state writs Together with this list of duties, USMS officials have the responsibility of knowing all that there is to know in the handbooks, guidelines and procedures published and printed on prisoner management. This is of course the initial step to the whole process (U.S. Marshals Service website, 2011). What best established the law enforcement and policing of the U.S. Marshals Service is its respected years of existence and well-built reputation. These esteemed people are appreciated by U.S. citizens that give big importance to the law. And even after all those years, USMS continuously proves that they are one of the most reliable federal law agencies there is, and that they will carry on improving their services to meet the law’s expectations. After all, in the end everyone, even the apathetic, does care for safety and security. “The challenges faced today by Marshals and their Deputies are no less demanding than those of the past. In fact, the skills, devotion and determination required to carry out our contemporary responsibilities make the modern Marshals Service a unique and elite cadre of law enforcement professionals. And so, in looking back over our history, we would hope that you recognize and take pride in the fact that this agency is an intimate part of the continuum of the grand American experiment in self-government” (U.S. Marshals Service website, 2011). References US Marshal. (2012). About.com Legal Careers page, Retrieved from http://legalcareers.about.com/od/lawenforcementcareers/a/USMarshal.htm U.S Marshals Service. (2011). Retrieved August 18, 2012, from U.S. Marshals Service website, http://www.usmarshals.gov/duties/factsheets/general-2011.html US Marshal Service Training Academy. (2011). Envisagetech Files Wordpress. Retrieved from http://envisagetech.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/us-marchals-service-training-academy.pdf US Marshals Arrest Man in High Point. (2012). My Fox 8.com page, Retrieved from http://myfox8.com/2012/08/16/us-marshalls-arrest-man-in-high-point/ USMS Manual. (2007). Retrieved August 18, 2012, from US Department of Justice website, http://www.justice.gov/jmd/mps/manual/usms.htm Read More