Fast and Furious

Please respond to the following discussion topic and submit it to the discussion forum as a single post. Your initial post should be 75-150 words in length.

Then, make at least two thoughtful responses to your fellow students' posts. If you haven't recently, please review the Rules of Discussion.

On December 14, 2010 Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry and three other agents were situated on a Arizona-Mexican Border trying to interdict heavily armed Mexican criminals who roam the border region intercepting "drug mules" (Mexicans who cross over the U.S.-Mexico line carrying drugs into the U.S. (to be sold). These criminals cross the border to rip off the "drug mules".

During their shift, the four agents spotted five suspects armed with rifles. The team identified themselves as police to which the individuals opened fire on the officers. There was a brief firefight, during which, Agent Terry was struck (and later died).

The following investigation revealed the weapon that fired the round that hit Agent Terry was a weapon that had been "walked" across the border as a part of the Fast and Furious program.

The idea of the program was to deliver (called "walking") firearms (through The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), via legal gun dealers, to low-level buyers who were believed to be acquiring the guns for the drug cartels in Mexico. Once that was done, the guns were to be traced in an attempt to establish whether in fact the guns were being delivered to the Mexican cartels or not.

During the program, hundreds of firearms were delivered and ultimately went missing, otherwise they were not traced as the original plan for this program required, and the locations of the weapons became unknown. Some of the weapons involved in this program turned up at murder scenes in Mexico and one being the weapon used to kill Border Patrol Agent Terry.

The following are two videos which discuss what the Fast and Furious program was and the history behind it. Watch the video and then respond to the following question.

Arizona Sheriff Explains Fast and Furious

Agent Killed in "Fast and Furious" Gun Operation

In your initial post, cover the events behind the ATF's Fast and Furious program. After that, discuss whether or not this type of program is/was an appropriate type of operation for which a law enforcement agency to engage. Why or Why not?

Would there have been a better way for this program to have been administered? If so, what would that look like?

Take a stand and defend your position.

should be 150 words, but may go longer depending on the topic. If you use any source outside of your own thoughts, you should reference that source. Include solid grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, and spelling.