February 1, 2012 7:36 PM

Family of Border Patrol agent Brian Terry sues U.S. government

By
Sharyl Attkisson
Topics
News ,
Law and Order
Guns recovered by ATF Agents (Credit: CBS)

Today, the parents of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Justice and its Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF). The lawsuit seeks $25 million dollars in compensation for Terry's death.

Terry was gunned down Dec. 14, 2010 in Arizona near the Mexico border, in an attack by illegal aliens armed with AK-47-type rifles. The rifles were part of ATF's then secret operation Fast and Furious, which allowed thousands of weapons to cross the border into Mexico in an attempt to lead to the "big fish" of a Mexican drug cartel. The controversial practice is called "gunwalking."

Terry's murder led some ATF agents who objected to their own agency's gunwalking, to blow the whistle to Congress and CBS News. Since then, the Justice Department has acknowledged gunwalking occurred; banned it in the future; and asked the Inspector General to investigate.

Terry's parents are also suing an Arizona gun store that cooperated with ATF in Fast and Furious by agreeing to sell weapons to suspicious buyers that would otherwise have been turned away. Several gun store owners who worked with ATF in gunwalking operations expressed concern over the tactics, but told Congressional investigators they felt forced to go along with the plan because ATF regulates the gun shops.

More Fast and Furious coverage:
More gunwalker questions for Attorney General Holder
Documents: ATF used "Fast and Furious" to make the case for gun regulations
Memos contradict Holder on Fast and Furious
Agent: I was ordered to let guns "walk" into Mexico
Gunwalking scandal uncovered at ATF

  • Sharyl Attkisson

    Sharyl Attkisson is a CBS News investigative correspondent based in Washington. All of her stories, videos and blogs are available here.

Add a Comment See all 12 Comments
by MacDerb February 5, 2012 12:55 PM EST
HOLDER: "America below an answer"

The interviewing of US Attorney General Eric Holder presented a couple of inarguable facts about the attitude and tone of Mr. Holder's general feelings about his role in the United States:

1) Mr. Holder stated to the inquisitors that their questions were "below an answer"
2) He IS the US Attorney General of the United States

Allow me to interpret Mr. Holder's attitude and tone concisely as he presented his prevaricating of time allotted to those interviewing him on Thursday:
Mr. Holder has no respect for the American people because his statement that all of these questions directly asked of him are "below an answer". This means he doesn't care what you or I think as the senators who interview him on our behalf as a nation inquire whether he actually knew of the acutely serious gun-running crimes or not. He simply does not care at all about it. His tone was one common today and typical of the Obama administration that simply explicates every statement or decision away as if it were a common or casual occurrence. He takes his title seriously, however and we can see that this is the first thing that comes out of his mouth when asked a question. Even so, Mr. Holder does not believe that he is under the law, by his methodical intent to see that he is never prosecuted and this calculation was evident throughout that interview. Why should he? One of the most serious crimes occurred under his watch that went without a check by the American people that failed to ensure that he, along with every member of Congress, every senator, and even the president himself stay within the constraints of their authority and power and do not cross that line. Mr. Holder did cross that line and even admitted it during his interview when he stated he had read documentation regarding this procedure.

Nevertheless, I have not seen such a permissive investigation team as those who are interviewing Mr. Holder to allow him to speak only of what his role entails instead of unequivocally answering the question put before him as it would be in a Court of law. None have held him to that. He talks only of what he does today as US Attorney General and what that role is comprised of and fails to answer what he should have done in the past during that particular time under those circumstances.

The days of holding our politicians accountable for their unlawful actions are fleeting and morphing into indulgence of abuse of power, which menaces the moral compass of the Department of Justice each day that we allow these to remain in their roles without punitive measures.

Mr. Holder should be relieved of his duties immediately pending further investigation. He lost his privilege to remain in his position when the first question of law was raised.

I urge the Senate of the United States to do what is correct and enforce the law on behalf of United States citizens.

I urge United States citizens to ensure that the Senate executes its duty to all of us in this examination.
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by rshawk February 2, 2012 9:25 AM EST
In the secret recordings reported on by Sharyl Attkisson, Hope MacCallister tells the FFL owner that if anyone is to be sued, it should be the FBI. She also confirmed that there were 3 guns. It is also obvious that the FFL was working with the ATF and Hope MacCallister was the "handler". She also talks about what the DoJ was doing to aggressively push back and this conversation took place in early March. MacCallister also references that Grassley isn't a committee chairman and seems to know that
it won't get past Leahy which turned out to be true.
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by MacDerb February 2, 2012 8:02 AM EST
I'm just letting you know, Agent Terry had a pre-existing duty. I doubt they will prevail, here. If they do, something amiss...
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by winchester70 February 2, 2012 6:34 AM EST
Sue Holder into penury while you are at it.
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by irreverentasever February 2, 2012 12:12 AM EST
Seems to me the State of Arizona is just as culpable for not enforcing the gun laws or monitoring their gun stores. What'cha got to say Guvner Blondie?
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by observer42 February 2, 2012 3:51 AM EST
FFLs are monitored by the ATF. When the ATF tells a FFL to take a specific action, there's always an unspoken "or else" attached.

Nice of you to try to blame everyone BUT the people responsible at the ATF and DOJ.
by cattiej February 1, 2012 11:03 PM EST
The best way we the citizens can fight this is to stop buying drugs. The rest of the citizens can fight this by not employing, nor working with illegal aliens and by boycotting ANY business that employee's illegals. Time to fight this one person at a time. If you know someone is illegal or suspect someone is illegal, call ICE...President Obama should put more guards on the border and build that darn fence that was suppose to be built. EVERY car, EVERY truck that comes across the border should be checked for drugs, illegal aliens etc. WE need to put a big fence up now...our government is letting us down and we need to complain by writing and calling our elected officals and writing to President Obama and asking him to close the gate!!!! Illegals are taking American jobs, their kids are getting a free education on our money. They are getting free healthcare and free food....no other country in our world give illegals these benefits...no wonder other countries think that Americans are stupid...and China knows that our elected officals are stupid...
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by irreverentasever February 2, 2012 12:34 AM EST
What about the water and air routes. Can we encirle the coastlines with floating mines? And all aircraft will have to enter through approved air corridors or be shot down at will.
by rshawk February 1, 2012 9:38 PM EST
Bringing in the FFL is a good idea, even though Mr. Howard did nothing wrong. I hope Sharyl Attkisson follows the trial. Didn't Dennis Burke already deny the Terry family victim status before he resigned? What about the Zapata family? Will they file, too? Does this development give the DoJ another convenient excuse for non-compliance with congress?
Reply to this comment
by vielmann February 1, 2012 9:51 PM EST
Remember this started under Bush:

WASHINGTON — A briefing paper prepared for Attorney General Michael Mukasey during the Bush administration in 2007 outlined failed attempts by federal agents to track illicitly purchased guns across the border into Mexico and stressed the need for U.S. and Mexican law enforcement officials to work together on such efforts using a tactic that now is generating controversy.

The information contained in one paragraph of a lengthy Nov. 16, 2007, document marks the first known instance of an attorney general being given information about the tactic known as "gun-walking." It since has become controversial amid a probe by congressional Republicans criticizing the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for using it during the Obama administration in an arms-trafficking investigation called Operation Fast and Furious that focused on several Phoenix-area gun shops.
by smittyc February 1, 2012 11:06 PM EST
In response to Vmann. That argues the case for those opposed to trying to set up the gunrunners. In 2007 report, they are stating they could not track the gunrunners so why was the gun walking allowed to continue if it wasn't working. ATF, DOJ and Holder have been put in a very bad light here, they perpertrated a crime and a life was taken. I don't condemn them for trying to set up the gun runners or track the cartels, but they should have kept control of the situation which didn't happen and then they should have backed off when they lost control of the program. The irony is all those who bought the guns and moved them to the cartels and Mexico have been arrested, and many guns have been recovered, but the guns that were not recovered as of this date have not been tracked, no one knows whose got them after they were sold to the gun runners. I see duplicity here, probably on the Mexican side of the border but who knows.
by Archie_Clements February 1, 2012 8:39 PM EST
So Eric, how are those "under the radar" gun-control programs going? The boss wants results....
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