Abstract
In December 2010, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed in a gun battle along the border between the United States and Mexico. Police traced two AK-47 assault rifles found at the scene to Jaime Avila, whom officials at the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) had previously suspected of purchasing weapons in the United States on behalf of “violent Mexican drug trafficking organizations.” Instead of arresting Avila and a number of other “straw purchasers,” however, ATF allowed him to continue buying guns in order to trace his purchases to a “large-scale gun trafficking organization.” Unfortunately, this “Operation Fast and Furious” did not turn out as ATF had hoped. Agents never captured any high-level targets, and of the nearly 2000 guns that were allowed to “walk,” only a little over 700 were ever recovered. Even worse, two of the guns had apparently been used to murder a federal law enforcement officer. ...
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2015
Recommended Citation
Riley T. Keenan, Executive Privilege as Constitution Common Law: Establishing Ground Rules in Political-Branch Information Disputes, 101 Cornell L. Rev. 223 (2015).
