John Boy

First of all, thank you for your kind words. There are MANY ATF Agents who have stood up and continue to do so and I am proud for that. I knew they would. As for my "crumpled shirt", I ironed it myself, (looked good to me). As for the $1000 suits, I got mine at a yard sale for 75 cents, thank goodness they only filmed above the waste because it didn't come with pants. I had cut-offs on.But you are absolutely right about one thing, they do not want me anywhere near the fifth floor, because there WOULD BE ACCOUNTABILTY.

Vince,
Could you please post the allegations they claimed to fire you, if they ever presented them to you. I know they have been after you for a while and it would be very informative to see the written charges they have come up with over the past several years.

John Boy: Again, I appreciate your comments. A lot of what you say makes sense.

On one point, I'll have to disagree. Giving info to Mexico doesn't appear to be a myth. In April, 2010 the author of “U.S. Firearms Trafficking to Mexico: New Data and Insights Illuminate Key Trends and Challenges” by Goodman and Marizco, interviewed an ATF official in Washington who admitted, “If a trace is successful, Mexican authorities receive information from ATF such as when the firearm was purchased, the name of the person that purchased the firearm, and the total number of firearms the person may have purchased.“ Goodman is a numbskull, but I've done a lot of reading and research on this issue, and it appears that ATF is indeed, providing first purchaser personal info to the Mexicans. But don't take my word for it.....

Ike,
I don't claim to be the holder of all knowledge, but I would be shocked and surprised to find out that we are sharing purchaser information from the trace reports with Mexico. We aren't even allowed to share information from US Police department to US Police department, even if they agree to give each other access to the information. Again, I could be wrong, but I think congress would be having a fit if we were sharing trace data with Mexico without their permission. Our trace data is strictly controlled by congressional mandate. We are not allowed to create databases with purchaser information. We can't even get multiple sales reports on assault weapons. Most of the firearms traffickers are quickly learning how to circumvent our FFL reporting requirements.

Ike, While I don't have a crystal ball and I can't truly examine ever example of ATF's "stupid stuff", I can tell you that every agency makes mistakes that potentially ruins lives and careers. Most agencies do the best they can to prevent it from happening, but again, "stupid stuff" happens. The only perfect person I know of was crucified 2,000 years ago. I could bad mouth other agencies to make my point, but I think we can all agree that everyone makes mistakes. We don't run NICS, that's the FBI. We don't give purchaser information to Mexico, another myth. Trust me, if you saw the traces that come from Mexico, it's a miracle that anything gets traced. I have seen trace request from Mexico that only have - .223 caliber. No make, model, serial number, nothing. If the military was held to the same standard as ATF, we would still be contemplating Pearl Harbor. The bottom line is ATF is the only agency that has the third largest lobbying group in the US using it as a whipping boy. I wonder how the FBI, DEA, USMS, etc.. would stand. Remember, under Reagan, the ATF was to be disbanded until the NRA realized that the FBI would be taking over the gun laws. Be careful of what you wish for. Unlimited funding and ten times the agents. J. Edgar Hoover will have a field day. ATF has problems and they need to be addressed. The biggest is accountability. The same lessons we teach our children seem to be lost on DOJ. When you do something, take responsibility and explain yourself. Then learn from the incident and make improvements. Trust me, DOJ is pulling ATF's strings.

You are right about the stupid stuff. No doubt every agency, department or corporation has stupid people pulling stupid stunts. No matter where you work, that is true. Tracing provides great leads on trafficking and straw purchases. Before Brady came about, it was even more powerful. Believe or not, a lot of criminals just went in and purchased guns from FFLs. People have been convicted on the 4473s or yellow form. I have done it. I had Armed Career Criminals or ACC (person previously convicted of three violent felonies) purchase guns and fill out of the forms from an FFL. I have convicted multiple criminals because of the trace. Today, it doesn't happen very often because of Brady. Today, because of tracing and multiple sales, we find traffickers and straw purchasers. It happens quite often. Don't believe everything you read. These tools work. I wish ATF would bring in a rep from the NRA and work more closely with them. I think we could come to a better understanding. I really believe that guns don't commit crimes, criminals commit crimes. We don't have enough agents to enforce the laws on the books. The last thing we need is more gun laws.

I believe I am representative of most ATF agents.

SFC_Swede,
First, if you are currently serving in the US Military, let me say Thank You for your service. It is because of our US Service members we are free.
Next, I fully support the second amendment. I have hunted and fished my entire life. I have numerous firearms. The only difference between me and the guy who has 100 guns is that he has the money to buy 100 guns. I have never taken guns from a citizen. My entire career I have worked to arrest and convict violent criminals. I wish I could go into detail and explain how many times I have worked with a citizen that did something stupid. I did the right thing, but it could easily be used against me by a defense attorney in a prosecution of a real criminal with a gun. If you came out and rode with ATF, you would quickly learn that 99.9% of everything ATF does everyday you agree is what you want us doing. Unfortunately, we are also used by both side of the political spectrum to bolster their agendas. I know there really are those out there how want to take away our guns, but their are also those who use us as a anvil to get more money for their organization. "ATF is coming for your guns, so send us more money to protect your gun rights". I remember getting into an argument years ago with a State Trooper. I was on vacation and the state trooper told me that congress had passed a law limiting magazine capacity. I told him he was crazy. We had too many laws on the books right now and that was just silly. Guess what, I was wrong. No one from congress ever consults ATF on the gun laws. They all do what benefits them to get reelected. Every time we target an area to reduce violent crime by targeting convicted felons with gun, we quickly show a reduction in violent crime.
So before we go any further, lets get one simple fact straight. Everyday, ATF agents are out there fighting violent crime. Regardless of our issues with our upper management, we are out there doing our job. Not targeting stupid regulations and FFLs, but locking up convicted felons with guns and violent gangs dealing drugs. 99.99% of everything we do, no one has a problem with. I don't know the details of every case in ATF. I do know that all the agents I know are doing the job you want us to do. At the end of the day, look at the size of ATF and then look at the number of prosecutions we do. Then take a look at the FBI, their size and their prosecutions. You will be truly shocked.