History
The positions of U.S. Marshals and Deputy Marshals were founded by the Judiciary Act of 1789. Marshals were granted broad power to assist federal courts in their administrative districts and execute any legal decisions made by Congress, judges, or the president (National Learning Corporation, 2019). Congress put a term restriction on the term of Marshals, the only position established by the Judiciary Act with an inevitable expiry, as a counterbalance to this extensive grant of power. Marshals could only hold office for four years in renewable tenure at the president’s discretion. The Marshals employed their Deputies up to the mid-twentieth- twentieth century, frequently dismissing Deputies who had served for the preceding Marsha (National Learning Corporation, 2019). Therefore, the Marshal’s term-limit policy usually applies to the Deputies. Their main responsibility was to assist the federal judiciary.
Marshals and their Deputies executed all court-issued summonses, subpoenas, warrants, and other procedures. At the same time, they dispersed the funds, performed all arrests, and managed all inmates. Marshals financed the U.S. attorneys, court clerks, witnesses, and jurors’ fees and costs (National Learning Corporation, 2019). They also employed bailiffs, janitors, and criers and, in turn, guaranteed the courts’ seamless operation. The Marshals oversaw the small stuff, so the lawyers and judges could focus on the major cases they were handling (National Learning Corporation, 2019). This included ensuring that the water jugs were full, the detainees were present, the witnesses were available, and jurors could be summoned if necessary.
Over the past two hundred years, the president and Congress have also requested the Marshals to accomplish unconventional or extraordinary operations. Some of these include: tracking down enemy foreigners during times of war, securing the American border against violent incursions into other nations, and exchanging spies with the Russian Empire.
Application/Training Process
Contacting their District Recruiting Officer should be the first step for anybody considering a future with the USMS. Applicants may get further information by contacting the national recruitment center if the local hiring agent is unhelpful. The U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) has basic requirements for candidates, much like almost every law enforcement position (DePaul & Calandro Jr, 2017). These are the ultimate, bare necessary preconditions that applicants must meet for their applications to be considered. Additionally, candidates must remember that fulfilling these prerequisites is not a promise of employment. To get into the training school, candidates must also show their knowledge and abilities and complete a physical evaluation (DePaul & Calandro Jr, 2017). The main requirements that prospective candidates should meet are summarized in Figure 1 below.
The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Glynco, Georgia, hosts the Service Basic Training Academy for USMS. Training at the U.S. Marshals Academy for GS-0082 Deputies is provided by USMS and FLETC teachers over 143 days (U.S. Marshals Service, 2020). Applicants must come to the FLETC at a great fitness level because of the high level of physical exercise and the limited length of the program (U.S. Marshals Service, 2020). Many hours are spent working on physical fitness and learning defensive techniques.
Candidates must get a passing grade on seven tests, and many pass/fail tasks, and all of the requisite fitness criteria. The USMS is, in fact, a “Stress Academy” in the form of a boot camp; nevertheless, it is more comparable to a training program for state police than it is to the standard 1811 Criminal Investigator Academy environment (U.S. Marshals Service, 2020). In reality, whereas the 1811 cadets are lazily having their morning coffees, U.S. Marshals are probably engaged in dawn practice laps. All participants must be physically and emotionally ready for USMS because of the complexity of its whole training approach, which is unique. They may check for a GPA of 3.0 or better, a place in the top third of the applicant’s institution. A year of graduate study in a subject relevant to the position, for instance, criminal justice, sociology, or the law, is required of hopefuls who apply.
Deputy Duties/Responsibilities
Law enforcement and security are among the many tasks of the deputy US marshal. Witness protection, court security, fugitive probes, convict transportation, correctional services, asset confiscation, and special operations are the primary responsibilities listed by the USMS for its deputies (Smith, 2021). Deputy US marshals are sometimes required to safeguard judges and jurors in federal courtrooms. According to DePaul and Calandro Jr (2017), transportation of prisoners to federal prisons may sometimes be required. Since employment at the USMS entails a significant amount of protection and security, individuals will need to be experienced with guns to perform their duties (DePaul et al., 2017; Scalora et al., 2020). This underscores officers’ importance in being physically fit to capture offenders or individuals who threaten their safety.
It is important to note that not all can succeed as a United States Marshal. To navigate the employment procedure and complete the academy’s demanding training program, one must be very committed and driven. The compensation, perks, and the pleasure of realizing that one will have a tough and valuable profession are worth the effort. For someone confident they have what is necessary to do the job, a career in the United States Marshals Service could be the ideal path to follow in the field of criminology.
References
DePaul, L., & Calandro Jr, J. (2017). Strategy through execution: Lessons from the U.S. Marshals. Available at SSRN 3042577.
DePaul, L., Calandro Jr, J., & Trowbridge, E. (2017). What Corporate Executives Can Learn from the US Marshals Service. American Security Today, 17, 17-27.
National Learning Corporation. (2019). United States Marshal. Syosset, N.Y: Passbooks.
Scalora, M. J., Hawthorne, D., Pellicane, T., & Schoeneman, K. (2020). A glimpse of threat assessment and management activity performed by the United States Marshals Service. Journal of Threat Assessment and Management, 7(1-2), 85–97.
Smith, T. B. (2021). Gang crackdowns and offender centrality in a countywide co-offending network: A networked evaluation of Operation Triple Beam. Journal of criminal justice, 73, 101755.
U.S. Marshals Service. (2020). Deputy U.S. Marshals. U.S. Marshals Service.