Federal Air Marshals Team Up With The National Association of Police Organizations to Stop Border Deployments
Federal Air Marshals Team Up With The National Association of Police Organizations to Stop Border Deployments
We are proud to stand with our partner NAPO to put a stop to this dangerous and unnecessary deployment policy.”
ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA , USA , November 8, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Air Marshal National Council (AMNC) today alongside the National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO), the largest unified police association in the United States, sent letters of concern to President Biden and various Congressional committees. The letters expose a DHS Policy that is taking air marshals off of high risk flights and deploying them to the southwest border where they are performing “mainly non-law enforcement duties.” The southern border is currently seeing record amounts of migrants crossing from Mexico into the United States. However, most of the work involves humanitarian work and not law enforcement. The letter written by AMNC President David Londo and Executive Director Sonya Hightower-LaBosco notes;— AMNC President David Londo
“History appears to be repeating itself and no one is paying attention. Currently, at the order of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Mayorkas, hundreds of Federal Air Marshals (FAMs) are being forced to deploy to the southern border to assist the Border Patrol in mainly non-law enforcement duties. The DHS Secretary is taking hundreds of FAMs out of the skies during the busiest travel season and during a time when terrorists have attempted to attack the homeland no so long ago. On December 22, 2001 Richard Reid attempted to blow up and kill hundreds of Americans aboard American Airlines flight 63, by igniting his shoes laced with explosives. On December 25, 2009 Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab boarded Northwest Airlines flight 253. Upon final approach to Detroit International Airport, Mr. Abdulmutallab attempted to ignite explosives that were concealed in his underwear.”
The AMNC requests immediate intervention to put a stop to what the union believes is an illegal practice by DHS Secretary Mayorkas. The union accuses Mayorkas of going beyond his authority and that the power to deploy the air marshals to the border rests with Congress.
“Secretary Mayorkas’s responsibility is to properly deploy law enforcement agents within the authorized intentions of Congress. Mayorkas does not have the authority to take FAMs out of the air to deploy to the border without Congressional approval. This is impounded by the fact that the President has yet to declare the situation an emergency. Most startling is the fact that Mayorkas himself has recently said that our country’s infrastructure and aviation remains a high threat.”
The letter notes that the current deployment initiative is decimating morale at the Federal Air Marshal Service.
“Our Federal Air Marshals have endured what the agency describes as an arduous flight schedule for the last twenty years. They have been deployed on average two to three nights every week away from home in defense of our nation. This has led to the FAMs having the highest divorce rate and one of the highest suicide rates in all of law enforcement. The marriages and families that remain intact today are hanging on by a thread. To force our FAMs to endure multiple 21 plus day deployments to the border will have a tremendous effect on the workforce and their families.”
Federal Air Marshal management has been called out several times in the recent past for improperly deploying FAMs. The DHS Inspector General recently issued a scathing report about the agencies beleaguered Quiet Skies program where the agency deploys its agents to follow people whom have not been accused or suspected of any wrongdoing. The report noted “TSA did not plan, implement, and manage it’s Quiet Skies Program.” Additionally, the Government Accountability Office (GAO 16-582) found that the agency didn’t use an adequate risk based model to deploy FAMs on the highest risk flights. Most recently the AMNC alongside Judicial Watch exposed an illegal program ironically codenamed the “VIP” program where the agency deployed FAMs exclusively on flights with members of congress. Essentially taking the almost $800 million dollar budget that was to be used to protect Americans and diverted it to protect congressional members who already have their own protection from other government agencies.
The AMNC hopes that not only will the illegal deployment of FAMs to the border be stopped but those in leadership responsible for the program be held accountable.
Gem Micheo
Federal Security Council
+1 800-864-6122
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