Quote:
Originally Posted by island911
Wow.
Those cops will be working for TSA in no time.
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Nah. Air Marshalls. They know how to use guns...
Houston Air Marshals Grounded
POSTED: 3:55 pm CDT June 17, 2008
UPDATED: 6:02 am CDT June 18, 2008
HOUSTON -- Note: The following story is a verbatim transcript of an Investigators story that aired on Tuesday, June 17, 2008, on KPRC Local 2 at 10 p.m.
Local 2 investigates federal law enforcement officers on the wrong side of the law. The federal government hired thousands of men and women after Sept. 11, 2001, to guard against terrorists in the sky. But, we discovered several of the air marshals are grounded, charged with crimes right here in Houston.
Investigative reporter Amy Davis wants to know while air marshals are watching for suspicious activity, who's watching them?
Edited - advertising banner removed. -Z-man.
Davis caught up with two federal air marshals at the Harris County Criminal Justice Center, where they are awaiting trial.
"Do you call this keeping a low profile?" Davis asked Alex Silva, charged with driving a motorcycle while under the influence of alcohol.
Court records show Silva crashed the bike into a moving car last August. His blood-alcohol content was .26 percent, more than three times the legal limit.
And it's not just Silva. Local 2 Investigates is watching a parade of federal air marshals march in and out of Harris County's criminal courts.
"You have to appear in court. Don't you think you should answer to the people that you're supposed to protect?" Davis asked Deno Stamos.
He replied, "No comment."
Court records show Stamos, a federal air marshal, according to HPD reports, is awaiting trial for his second DWI.
"They stopped him. They performed field sobriety tests and he failed," Vehicular Crimes prosecutor Warren Diepraam explained after reviewing the public court file on Stamos' case.
While Stamos waits for his criminal trial, he is receiving his full pay to report, not to a plane, but to the Houston air marshals' field office where he does clerical work, also called "light duty."
"It sounds like they're making good money to answer telephones," Davis said to a former top supervisor in a federal air marshals office.
"Yes, they are," he answered. "Most of the individuals are in fact professionals and have been trained and are up to standards at this point. But again, by virtue of the fact of which you've uncovered, there are obviously some people that have fallen through the crack."
Whitney Ashford is one of those people. In 2002 Ashford was caught driving the wrong way on the Sam Houston Tollway. He didn't immediately stop for Precinct 5 constables, but when he did, he flashed his federal air marshals badge and admitted he was carrying his service weapon. His blood-alcohol content was .17 percent, more than twice the legal limit.
Ashford's punishment? We learned when he pleaded guilty and received one-year probation, the Federal Air Marshal Service let him stay in the office that entire year receiving his full salary to answer phones.
"Is that punishing the air marshal or is that punishing taxpayers?" Davis asked the former supervisor.
"Taxpayers," he replied. "He certainly wasn't performing his job."
These days, some would argue Alex Silva isn't performing his job either. He is also on "light duty" awaiting trial for DWI.
In all, we discovered three federal air marshals right now charged with DWI awaiting trial. Two have already been convicted in separate cases. They are all working or not working, depending on how you look at it at this Houston field office.
"This is actually the first time it's come to my attention," said U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul.
We took what we found to your representatives in Congress.
"Frankly, I'm embarrassed," said U.S. Rep. Shelia Jackson Lee who chairs the Transportation Security and Infrastructure Protection Committee.
Most representatives have questions about what we uncovered.
"How many more of these cases are there out there and how safe are our passengers and our Americans when they get on an airplane?" asked McCaul.
It's a question that the Transportation Security Administration wouldn't answer.
It sent us this statement:
"The Federal Air Marshal Service does not disclose who is or is not an air marshal, regardless of the claims made by independent sources."
But we didn't have to go far to find that information. The names, employers and details of the alleged crimes committed by the Houston air marshals is all on file at the Harris County courthouse.
"And it's all public record in Texas," said U.S. Rep. Gene Green. "I assume it's that way in every state. You can go down and see who was charged, who was convicted. I would question whether we really want someone like that that has been identified publicly as an air marshal, whatever the law says."
Apparently there is no law. The Federal Air Marshal Service tells Local 2 that when it comes to DWIs and misdemeanors, the special agent in-charge at each field office has the sole discretion on deciding who is fired, who is disciplined and how they are punished.
"Were you surprised that there isn't a policy like that already?" Davis asked U.S. Rep. Ted Poe.
"I was surprised," Poe said. "Federal government has a policy for everything."
What we uncovered even surprised local law enforcement. We checked with both the Houston police and the Harris County Sheriff's Office.
"There are no deputies that have been convicted of DWI that we were aware of who were able to retain their certified position within the department. They have all been terminated," Harris County Sheriff's spokesman David Crain told us.
"Should they be held to a higher standard?" Davis asked Poe.
"They should be held at least to a standard," he replied. "The way the system apparently works now, there is no standard. It is disturbing to me. I think it is going to be disturbing to many members in the Congress when we hold hearings on this to get to the bottom of who is really protecting us in the air?"
It's not just DWI. Air marshals in the Houston office have also been charged with more serious offenses like crimes against children and drug trafficking.
Wednesday night at 10, was there a breakdown in background investigations when these air marshals were hired? We talk to insiders and find out what your U.S. representatives plan to do about what we've uncovered.
If you have a news tip or question for KPRC Local 2 Investigates, drop them an e-mail or call their tipline at (713) 223-TIPS (8477).
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