The principal law enforcement agencies of the federal government are the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security, and the United States Postal Service. The jurisdiction of federal law enforcement agencies is limited to the government’s power to regulate interstate commerce, impose taxes, and enforce constitutional and federal law. Department of Justice agencies include the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which deals with bank robberies, kidnappings, terrorism, and violation of other federal laws and provides training, identification, and laboratory services to local police; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, which investigates alcohol and tobacco smuggling, bombings, and violations of federal firearms and arson laws; the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which investigates cases involving illicit narcotics and drugs; and the U.S. Marshals Service, which has responsibility for safeguarding and transporting federal prisoners and acting as marshals for U.S. courts. Law enforcement agencies in the Department of Homeland Security include the United States Coast Guard, which protects the country’s ports and waterways; the Bureau of Border Security, which enforces immigration laws and includes the Border Patrol; the Secret Service, whose primary responsibilities include protection of the president and vice president and their families and investigation of counterfeiting; and the United States Customs Service, which investigates smuggling and inspects passengers, vehicles, and cargo entering or leaving the country. Within the U.S. Postal Service, the Postal Inspections Service deals with such crimes as mail fraud and misuse of the mails.(Amanda N. Wegner)
Fundamentally, two kinds of state police agencies subsist in the United States: those with general functions similar to local police and those with limited responsibilities, mainly involving highway patrol on state roads. A city police force is usually organized as one of several departments within the local government. The police are part of the local criminal justice system, which......
