AZMEX F&F EXTRA 2 14 DEC 2012
Family of murdered border agent sues federal officials over 'Fast and
Furious'
Published December 14, 2012
Associated Press
PHOENIX – The family of a slain Border Patrol agent has sued federal
officials over the botched "Fast and Furious" gun operation.
Agent Brian Terry was mortally wounded on Dec. 14, 2010, in a
firefight north of the Arizona-Mexico border between U.S. agents and
five men who had sneaked into the country to rob marijuana smugglers.
Federal authorities conducting "Fast and Furious" have faced tough
criticism for allowing suspected straw gun buyers for a smuggling
ring to walk away from gun shops in Arizona with weapons, rather than
arrest them and seize weapons.
The lawsuit filed Thursday and made publicly available on Friday came
from Terry's parents against six managers and investigators for the
U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The family also sued a federal prosecutor who had previously handled
the case but is no longer on it, and the owner of the gun store where
two rifles found in the firefight's aftermath were bought.
The family alleges that the ATF officials and federal prosecutor
created a risk to law enforcement officers such as Terry and that the
firearms agents should have known their actions would lead to
injuries and deaths to civilians and police officers in America and
Mexico.
The family also alleged that firearms agents and the prosecutor
sought to cover up the link between Terry's death and the botched gun
smuggling investigation.
The "Fast and Furious" operation was launched in 2009 to catch
trafficking kingpins, but agents lost track of about 1,400 of the
more than 2,000 weapons involved.
Authorities say the ring was believed to have supplied the Sinaloa
cartel with guns. Mexico's drug cartels often seek out guns in the
U.S. because gun laws in Mexico are more restrictive than in the U.S.
Some guns purchased by the ring were later found at crime scenes in
Mexico and the United States.
The probe's failures were revealed -- and later examined in
congressional inquiries.
So far, 15 of the 20 people charged in the gun smuggling case have
pleaded guilty to charges.
Authorities have a separate case pending in federal court in Tucson
against five men charged with murder in Terry's death.
So far, one man has pleaded guilty to first-degree murder. Of the
five men accused in Terry's killing, two are in custody, and three
others remain fugitives.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/12/14/family-murdered-
border-agent-sues-federal-officials-over-fast-and-furious/?
test=latestnews#ixzz2F4WM9ra5
Family of slain Border Patrol agent sues officials
By Associated Press
Originally published: Dec 14, 2012 - 3:18 pm
http://www.ktar.com/22/1595413/Family-of-slain-BP-agent-sues-officials
PHOENIX -- The family of a slain Border Patrol agent has sued federal
officials over the botched ``Fast and Furious'' gun operation.
Agent Brian Terry was mortally wounded on Dec. 14, 2010, in a
firefight north of the Arizona-Mexico border between border agents
and five men who had sneaked into the country to rob marijuana
smugglers.
Two assault rifles acquired by a straw buyer for the gun smuggling
ring targeted in the ``Fast and Furious'' operation were found in the
aftermath of the shootout near Nogales.
Federal authorities conducting ``Fast and Furious'' have faced tough
criticism for allowing suspected straw gun buyers for the ring to
walk away from gun shops in Arizona with weapons, rather than arrest
them and seize weapons.
The investigation was launched in 2009 to catch trafficking kingpins,
but agents lost track of about 1,400 of the more than 2,000 weapons
involved.
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