Failed gun sting needs answers
thetimesherald.com
Opinion
Sep 9, 2011

Whatever the government officials in charge of Operation Fast and Furious thought they were trying to achieve, the controversial program failed miserably -- and the American public deserves answers.

Hatched by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in 2009, Fast and Furious was a sting operated by the ATF's Phoenix office. It was supposed to fight illegal gun trafficking, but it was so poorly run that it undermined the fight against illegal firearms.

The plan was to allow straw firearms purchasers to transport the weapons to Mexico. There, they would sell the weapons to Mexican drug gangs so the ATF could build its case against them.

The operation's leaders lost track of a substantial number of the guns -- about 2,000 of them. Some of those weapons were used to commit crimes in Mexico and the United States.

Brian Terry was a tragic victim. The U.S. Border Patrol agent was shot and killed Dec. 14, near Rio Rico, Ariz.

Terry, 40, lost his life trying to arrest a group of suspects who robbed illegal aliens crossing the U.S.-Mexican border. Two of the weapons recovered from the suspects were ones the ATF used in its sting operation and failed to track.

The plug was pulled on Operation Fast and Furious, and Congress and the Justice Department are investigating it. The question is exactly how far responsibility for the program reaches.

Attorney General Eric Holder said this week neither he nor senior Justice Department officials were aware of Operation Fast and Furious.

What is certain, however, is a federal agent was killed by criminals with guns the sting failed to track.

The loss of Brian Terry is especially difficult for Michigan residents to accept. He attended high school in Flat Rock and served as a Lincoln Park police officer.

Operation Fast and Furious was a disgrace. The American people must know why it was created, why it failed and who was responsible.

That's the least that must be done to respect Brian Terry's memory.

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