Federal Agents: The Growth of Federal Law Enforcement in America

249 Pages·2006·0.54 MB·English

by  Jeffrey B. Bumgarner

Federal Agents: The
Growth of Federal Law
Enforcement in America
Jeffrey B. Bumgarner
PRAEGER
FEDERAL AGENTS

FEDERAL AGENTS
THE GROWTH
OF FEDERAL LAW
ENFORCEMENT
IN AMERICA
Jeffrey B. Bumgarner
Library ofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Bumgarner,Jeffrey B.
Federal agents :the growth of federal law enforcement in America / Jeffrey
B.Bumgarner.
p.cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0–275–98953–4 (alk.paper)
1. Law enforcement–United States. I.Title.
HV7561.B86 2006
363.20973—dc22 2006014288
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available.
Copyright © 2006 by Jeffrey B.Bumgarner
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be
reproduced,by any process or technique,without the
express written consent of the publisher.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number:2006014288
ISBN:0–275–98953–4
First published in 2006
Praeger Publishers,88 Post Road West,Westport,CT 06881
An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group,Inc.
www.praeger.com
Printed in the United States of America
The paper used in this book complies with the
Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National
Information Standards Organization (Z39.48–1984).
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This book is dedicated to my wife Kathy and my sons Jack, Alex, and Carl.
Thanks for patiently enduring another book project. Okay, boys—time to play
“tackle.”
This book is also dedicated to the men and women who have chosen to serve
their country as federal law enforcement officers and agents. They have my
heartfelt gratitude for the unending vigilance they exhibit in protecting the
Homeland.

Contents
Preface ix
Chapter 1. The United States Constitution and Federal
Police Power 1
Chapter 2. Federal Law Enforcement Takes Root in America
(1700s–1850s) 19
Chapter 3. Go West,Young Man (1860–1920s) 37
Chapter 4. Hoover’s G-men Come of Age 51
Chapter 5. Overshadowed but Not Forgotten (Other Treasury
andJustice Agencies) 69
Chapter 6. The Inspectors General (and the Battle Against Fraud,
Waste,and Abuse) 95
Chapter 7. And Then There Were 100 (The Rest of the Federal Law
Enforcement Community) 111
Chapter 8. Public Policy,Homeland Security,and the Future of
Federal Law Enforcement 137
viii Contents
Appendix A: Chapters of the Federal Criminal Code 159
Appendix B: Majority and Dissenting Opinions Containing Principle
Arguments for and Against Broad Federal Police Power
from the Landmark Case of U.S. v. Lopez(1995) 163
Appendix C: Partial List of Federal Law Enforcement Agencies
andTypes of Officers They Employ 191
Appendix D: Table of Contents of the USA PATRIOT Act 195
Appendix E: Selected Events in the Chronology of Federal
LawEnforcement 203
Notes 211
Selected Bibliography 221
Index 229
About the Author 235
Preface
Generally speaking, there are few subjects that have captured the
attention and imagination of the American public to the degree that
police work has. A examination of the programming on television
and movies that are produced each year reveals that a persistently
recurring theme is the crime drama.The story lines are usually varia-
tions of the same formula. The hero cops, who are flawed in many
ways personally and perhaps professionally, nevertheless rise to the
occasion to successfully investigate the crimes they are confronted
with and dispense justice upon the evil-doers. Often, the heroes of
these stories are local law enforcement officers.Bust just as often,they
are federal agents. To be sure, Americans are fascinated with federal
law enforcement.
One need not look only to Hollywood to find an interest in law
enforcement generally and federal law enforcement specifically. In
fact, the nation’s colleges and universities provide ample evidence of
this interest. Today in the United States, criminal justice is one of the
fastest growing majors on college campuses throughout the country.
Schools that do not possess criminal justice majors are rushing to
develop such programs,and those with criminal justice or related pro-
grams in place find themselves in a never-ending cycle of hiring faculty
to keep up with the student demand. For every newly minted Ph.D.
graduate in criminal justice,there are 1.3 criminal justice faculty posi-
tions around the country needing to be filled.