http://edition.cnn.com/2015/03/26/politics/dea-agents-bad-behavior/index.html
Summary: Washington (CNN)Drug Enforcement Administration agents in foreign postings attended sex parties with prostitutes paid for by drug cartels, according to a Justice Department inspector general report.
The report by Michael Horowitz, the Justice Department’s inspector general, cites light punishments and poor handling of sexual misconduct cases at DEA and other Justice Department agencies.
Employees from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives and the U.S. Marshals Service allegedly had inappropriate relationships with subordinates, the report said, with few repercussions.
In some cases, federal agents holding sensitive jobs, with security clearances, violated federal policies by having sex with prostitutes overseas and the agencies didn’t properly investigate.
Horowitz also criticized the DEA and FBI for initially being uncooperative with the investigation, with the DEA refusing to turn over documents they were required to under federal law.
The number of sexual misconduct cases are small, Horowitz’s report says, but “we found instances where ATF, DEA, and USMS employees engaged in a pattern of high-risk sexual behavior, but security personnel were not informed about these incidents until well after they occurred, or were never informed. By failing to refer these allegations to security personnel, the high-risk sexual behavior of these employees has the potential to expose ATF, DEA, and USMS employees to coercion, extortion, and blackmail and presents security risks for these components.”
The DEA’s troubles appear to be the worst among Justice Department agencies, according to the inspector general.
The DEA’s internal watchdog, in interviews in 2009-10, found that police in an unidentified foreign country reported that DEA agents, including senior supervisors, had sex with prostitutes and committed other serious sexual misconduct.
A foreign police officer allegedly arranged sex parties for DEA agents at their U.S. government-paid apartments with prostitutes paid for by local drug cartels. The inspector general said the agents should have known the prostitutes were paid for by cartel funds.
The foreign police officers also said they provided protection for the DEA agents’ weapons during the parties and that three DEA agents were provided money, expensive gifts and weapons from drug cartel members, the report said.
DEA supervisors didn’t discipline all the agents involved, treating the incident as a local issue for a supervisor to handle. An agent was suspended for 14 days for allowing his apartment to be used in the parties.
Justice Department spokesman Patrick Rodenbush said the department “takes the issues raised in the Inspector General report seriously and, as the appendix of the report makes clear, is taking steps to implement policies and procedures to help prevent them from happening in the future. The Department is already working with the law enforcement components to ensure a zero tolerance policy on sexual harassment and misconduct is enforced and that incidents are properly reported.”
Among the other findings, according to the report: in 2009, an ATF Director of Industry Operations on a temporary assignment modified a hotel room door to facilitate sex acts with anonymous people.
Law enforcement officials say the executive used a website to invite men to come to his room for sex through a so-called “glory hole.”
His actions were discovered because he tampered with a smoke detector, and the hotel notified local police, according to the report, which added that he told police he had done similar activities before and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor “fire prevention interference.” The ATF suspended the executive for 14 days, but has allowed him to keep his “top secret” security clearance. He still works at ATF headquarters.
In 2010, a U.S. Marshals deputy sent to Thailand to extradite a criminal suspect in Bangkok allegedly admitted having sex with prostitutes while on his assignment. The deputy was admonished verbally and the State Department ordered that he no longer be allowed to go to Thailand, according to the report.
Core Democratic Values: This news article has to do with Authority, Loyalty, Property, and Truth
Authority: The DEA agents were misusing there power to acquire drugs and money from the drug cartels
Loyalty: The DEA agents weren’t loyal to there country or their occupation.
Property: The houses that they threw the parties at were owned by the government.
Truth: The agents were not honest about what they were doing.
This article is a little bit more humorous than the past articles I have written but this is still a serious issue because the people who were supposed to be protecting us were being paid off by the drug cartels.
The Executive Functioning skills that would have benifeted the agents would be goal directed persistance, and emotional control
Their focus at the party was fun instead of their job.
I do not think the agents had enough emotional control to complete their job.
The agents did not have an organized plan they were very impulsive.
Andrew Powers • Apr 22, 2015 at 12:56 pm
Our System of government is not the definition of democracy, while we have a more democratic government then most countries, there are also many with a more pure and legitimate form of democracy. For example Switzerland. So the US making an idea or value a part of its system of government by no means makes that idea or theme democratic.
Andrew Powers • Apr 22, 2015 at 12:40 pm
Every system of government has a source of authority so its not really a “value” of any of them its more of a requirement to be a government. “we’ll kill your family if you disobey us” that’s China source of authority (unless you live in an SEZ) and id say its a lot more authoritative then ours.
Loyalty is more a core value of feudalism or totalitarian governments. In a democracy you are obligated to only be loyal to a just government.
Ten naked people in the woods can have a democracy no Property necessary. Across the world and in the US (early US) Property was clearly causing democracy to be subverted, because only adult male PROPERTY (in this case land) owners were allowed to vote.
John Locke dindt invent democracy it had really be formed it the minds of the Greeks about 1300 years early.
oceanmtnsky • Apr 22, 2015 at 12:47 pm
I disagree with your thoughts about China. Power and authority are separate. As humans we have the power to do many things but Authority is the proper use of power governed by our natural rights as human beings. These “natural rights” are the philosophical underpinnings of Democracy as stated by John Locke and others and they are the foundation of what we call international Human Rights today. Many governments including our own have used power without authority by violating basic human rights.
oceanmtnsky • Apr 22, 2015 at 12:49 pm
I also agree with you that these “Core Democratic Values” may be found in other ways, other types of society and other forms of government. They are manifested uniquely when we define them as “democratic” values.
Andrew Powers • Apr 20, 2015 at 12:30 pm
Authority…Loyalty…Property…Democratic values?
oceanmtnsky • Apr 20, 2015 at 12:46 pm
“WE the PEOPLE” = this is the source of authority in our limited government known as a DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC
“Loyalty” = It takes loyalty and trust operate a democracy effectively.
“Property” = this was turned into “pursuit of happiness” by Thomas Jefferson in the D. Of Independence but John Locke says it is one of our natural rights and certainly it shapes our democratic debate over tax policy.