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In reply to the discussion: Elon Musk's private security detail gets deputized by US Marshals Service [View all]ancianita
(39,646 posts)has an important and long history in law enforcement, but it's become too political.
Criticism and controversy
An audit by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) (November 2010) of the Justice Department found "weaknesses in the USMS's efforts to secure federal court facilities in the six USMS district offices we visited".[80]
The report found, among other things, that the Marshals Service's Judicial Security Division had contracted private security firms to provide Court Security Officers without having completed background checks.
Another incident involved the Marshals Service awarding a $300 million contract to a security guard company named USProtect Corporation, which had a known history of numerous criminal activities leading to convictions for mail fraud and bank fraud and false insurance claims in addition to a civil judgment against its chief financial officer.
Technical problems included court security officers not being properly trained on security screening equipment, which also meant equipment not being used. The OIG noted that in February 2009, several courthouses failed to detect mock explosives sent by Marshals Service Headquarters in order to test security procedures. They also found that 18% of court security officers had outdated firearms qualifications.
Internal thefts
On March 26, 2009, the body of Deputy U.S. Marshal Vincent Bustamante was discovered in Juárez, Mexico, according to the Marshals Service.
Bustamante, who was accused of stealing and pawning government property, was a fugitive from the law at the time of his death. Chihuahua State Police said the body had multiple wounds to the head apparently consistent with an execution-style shooting.[81]
In January 2007, Deputy U.S. Marshal John Thomas Ambrose was charged with theft of Justice Department property, disclosure of confidential information, and lying to federal agents during an investigation. Deputy Ambrose had been in charge of protecting mobster-turned-informant Nicholas Calabrese, who was instrumental in sending three mob bosses to prison for life.[82] A federal jury convicted Ambrose on April 27, 2009, of leaking secret government information concerning Calabrese to William Guide, a family friend and former Chicago police officer who had also served time in prison for corruption. Ambrose also was convicted of theft of government property but acquitted of lying to federal agents.[83] On October 27, 2009, Ambrose was sentenced to serve four years in prison.[84]
Racial discrimination
In 1998, retired Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal Matthew Fogg won a landmark EEO and Title VII racial discrimination and retaliation lawsuit against the Justice Department, for which he was awarded $4 million.
The jury found the entire Marshals Service to be a "racially hostile environment" which discriminates against black employees in its promotion practices.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson summarized the jurors' decision by stating that they felt there was an "atmosphere of racial disharmony and mistrust within the United States Marshal Service".[85][86]
As of 2011, Fogg is president of "Bigots with Badges",[86] and executive director of CARCLE (Congress Against Racism and Corruption in Law Enforcement), and is also associated with Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), a drug law reform organization of law enforcement officers.[87]
In September 2023, U.S. Marshals Service settled a $15 million, nearly 30-year-old EEOC class action lawsuit filed by Matthew Fogg in January, 1994. Alleging discrimination against African-American Deputy U.S. Marshal applicants, employees and Detention Officers with regard to hiring, promotions, recruitment and headquarter assignments.[88]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Marshals_Service
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