The Secret Service was created in 1865 as a federal law enforcement agency within the Treasury Department. It derives its legal authority from Title 18, United States Code, Section 3056. It was established for the express purpose of stopping counterfeiting operations which had sprung up in this country following the introduction of paper currency during the Civil War (Treasury, 2002, Online). The Secret Service maintains its role as guardian of the integrity of our currency, but today also investigates crimes involving United States securities, coinage, other government issues, credit and debit card fraud, and electronic funds transfer fraud. The most obvious of its other activities is executive protection, which began after the assassination of President McKinley in 1901(Treasury, 2002, Online).
In the 1800s, America’s monetary system was very disorganized. Bills and coins were issued by each state through individual banks, which generated many types of legal currency. With so many different kinds of bills in circulation, it was easy for people to counterfeit money. The Secret Service officially went to work on July 5, 1865. Its first chief was William Wood.
Chief Wood, widely known for his heroism during the Civil War, was very successful in his first year, closing more than 200 counterfeiting plants. This success helped prove the value of the Secret Service, and in 1866 the National Headquarters was established in the Department of the Treasury building in Washington, D. C (Treasury, 2002, Online). During the evening of the same day President Lincoln established the Secret Service, he was assassinated at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.
C. , by John Wilkes Booth. The country mourned as news spread that the President had been shot (White House, online). It was the first time in our nation’s history that a President had been assassinated and it was the reason that the Congress eventually, after two more presidential assassinations, added Presidential protection to the list of duties performed by the Secret Service. Since 1901, every President from Theodore Roosevelt on has been protected by the Secret Service. In 1917, threats against the President became a felony and Secret Service protection was broadened to include all members of the First Family (White House, online).
In 1951, protection of the Vice President and the President-elect was added. After the assassination of Presidential candidate Robert Kennedy in 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-1969) authorized the Secret Service to protect all Presidential candidates. Over the years, the Secret Service’s function has continued to change and grow. Its functions include: Protecting the President and Vice President and their families, candidates for those offices, former Presidents and their families, and visiting heads of foreign states and governments; Enforcing laws against counterfeiting currency, coins, or securities of the United States; Enforcing laws against fraud or forgery of Government checks or bonds, and other securities and obligations of the United States; Investigating credit and debit card fraud, computer fraud, and electronic fund transfer fraud; Furnishing physical security for the White House, the Main Treasury Building, and foreign embassies and missions in Washington, New York and other cities.
(Treasury, 2002, Online). These functions are directly reflected, below, in their mission statement and fall into two distinct categories – the investigative mission and the protective mission. The United States Secret Service is mandated by statute and executive order to carry out two significant missions: protection and criminal investigations. The Secret Service protects the President and Vice President, their families, heads of state, and other designated individuals; investigates threats against these protectees; protects the White House, Vice President’s Residence, Foreign Missions, and other buildings within Washington, D. C.
; and plans and implements security designs for designated National Special Security Events. The Secret Service also investigates violations of laws relating to counterfeiting of obligations and securities of the United States; financial crimes that include, but are not limited to, access device fraud, financial institution fraud, identity theft, computer fraud; and computer-based attacks on our nation’s financial, banking, and telecommunications infrastructure. Protection remains the Secret Service’s primary mission. The Secret Service Uniformed Division shares in accomplishing this mission through its protection of the White House and its immediate surroundings, as well as the residence of the Vice President, and over 170 foreign embassies located in Washington, D. C.
Originally a force comprised of a few members of the military and the Metropolitan Police Department, it began formalized protection of the White House and its grounds in 1860. This unit was under the direction of the White House Military Aide until July 1, 1922 when President Warren G. Harding prompted the establishment of a White House Police Force. It was not until 1930, after an unknown intruder managed to walk into the White House dining room, that President Herbert Hoover recognized the need for the White House Police and the Secret Service to join forces.
President Hoover wanted the Secret Service to exclusively control every aspect of Presidential protection; therefore, Congress placed the supervision of the White House Police under the direction of the Chief of the Secret Service. In 1970, Public Law 91-217 expanded the role of the White House Police, newly named the Executive Protective Service, to include protection of diplomatic missions in the Washington, D. C. ,area. Congress later added the protection of the Vice President’s immediate family to the Executive Protective Service’s growing responsibilities in 1974.
After several name revisions, the force officially adopted its current name, the United States Secret Service Uniformed Division in 1977. The Special Agent Division assists with the Secret Service’s protective mission through their work with personal protection. Agents in this division are responsible for the welfare, safety, and protection of certain eligible individuals. The Secret Service protective methods are generally the same for all individuals protected. Permanent protectees, such as the President and the First Lady, have details of special agents assigned to them. Temporary protectees, such as candidates and foreign dignitaries, have details of special agents on temporary assignment from Secret Service field offices.
The Secret Service does not discuss methods or means in any detail, however generally speaking, the advance team surveys each site to be visited. From these surveys, the members determine manpower, equipment, hospitals, and evacuation routes for emergencies. Fire, rescue, and other public service personnel in the community are alerted. A command post is established with full communications facilities.
The assistance of the military, federal, state, county, and local law enforcement organizations is a vital part of the entire security operation. Before the protectee’s arrival, the lead advance agent coordinates all law enforcement representatives participating in the visit. Personnel are posted and are alerted to specific problems associated with the visit. Intelligence information is discussed, identification specified, and emergency options outlined. Prior to the arrival of the protectee, checkpoints are established, and access to the secured area is limited.
During the visit, Secret Service and local law enforcement personnel form a network of support for members of the detail surrounding the protectee. The Secret Service command post acts as the communication center for protective activities, monitors emergencies, and keeps all participants in contact with one another. After the visit, agents analyze every step of the protective operation, record unusual incidents, and suggest improvements for the future. Protective research is an integral component of all security operations. Agents and specialists assigned to protective research evaluate information received from law enforcement/intelligence agencies and a variety of other sources regarding individuals or groups who may pose a threat to Secret Service protectees.
They review questionable letters and emails received at the White House and maintain a 24-hour operation to receive, coordinate and disseminate protection-related information. While most people associate the Secret Service with Presidential protection, their original mandate was to investigate the counterfeiting of U. S. currency–which they still do. The Secret Service’s primary investigative mission is to safeguard the payment and financial systems of the United States.
This has been historically accomplished through the enforcement of the counterfeiting statutes to preserve the integrity of United States currency, coin and financial obligations. Since 1984, their investigative responsibilities have expanded to include crimes that involve financial institution fraud, computer and telecommunications fraud, false identification documents, access device fraud, advance fee fraud, electronic funds transfers, and money laundering as it relates to their core violations. Three different divisions assist the Secret Service in accomplishing this investigative mission — the Special Agent Division, the Financial Crimes Division, and the Forensic Services Division. Due to my personal interests, I found the Forensic Services Division particularly interesting. Forensic examiners in the Secret Service Forensic Services Division (FSD) provide analysis for questioned documents, fingerprints, false identification, credit cards, and other related forensic science areas. Examiners use both instrumental and chemical analysis when reviewing evidence.
FSD also manages the Secret Service’s polygraph program nationwide. The division coordinates photographic, graphic, video, and audio and image enhancement service, as well as the Voice Identification Program. In addition, FSD is responsible for handling the Forensic Hypnosis Program. Much of the forensic assistance the Secret Service offers is unique technology operated in this country only by FSD.
The Secret Service has approximately 5,000 employees, and field offices located throughout the continental U. S. ; in Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico; and liaison offices in Paris, France; London, England; Bonn, Germany; Rome and Milan, Italy; Hong Kong, China; Ottawa, Montreal and Vancouver, Canada; Nicosia, Cyprus; Bogota, Colombia; Manila, Philippines; and Bangkok, Thailand. It has more than 2,100 special agents who are rotated throughout their careers between investigative and permanent protective assignments. Agents assigned to investigative duties in the Service’s field offices also serve as a source of additional manpower for temporary protective details, such as those for candidates or visiting foreign dignitaries. The Secret Service also has approximately 1,200 officers in the Uniformed Division.
Officers of the Uniformed Division carry out their protective responsibilities through special support units (Countersniper, Canine Explosive Detection Team, Emergency Response Team, Crime Scene Search Technicians, Special Operations Section, Magnetometers) and a network of fixed security posts, foot, bicycle, vehicular and motorcycle patrols. Numerous specialists in a wide variety of occupations contribute their expertise to the Secret Service’s investigative and protective missions. They include security specialists, electronics engineers, communications technicians, research psychologists, computer experts, armorers, intelligence analysts, polygraph examiners, forensic experts, and professionals in many other fields. The United States Secret Service is dramatically different today than it was just three years ago. This is primarily due to the events surrounding September 11, 2001. That morning, there were 4,600 employees of the Secret Service deployed around the world while a special contingent was with President George W.
Bush at an elementary school. In a matter of minutes, the Secret Service deployed armed agents into Lafayette Park to clear it and evacuated the Capitol and west wing of the White House. Four planes had been hijacked by terrorists, the World Trade Center was in ashes, the Pentagon had been hit, and the nation knew that it was at war. What kind of war, and how it would involve the Secret Service would remain to be seen. On October 26, 2001, in a crowded White House Press Room, President George W. Bush signed the Patriot Act, a broad-sweeping anti-terrorism bill.
The full text of his speech is included on the White House web site, along with a recorded TV version. The President explained in his speech that this bill is an “essential step in defeating terrorism, while protecting the constitutional rights of all Americans and giving intelligence and law enforcement officials important new tools to fight a present danger (Bush, 2001, Online). The changes, effective today, will help counter a threat like no other our nation has ever faced. We’ve seen the enemy, and the murder of thousands of innocent, unsuspecting people. They recognize no barrier of morality.
They have no conscience. The terrorists cannot be reasoned with. . .
But one thing is for certain: These terrorists must be pursued, they must be defeated, and they must be brought to justice. . . Since the 11th of September, the men and women of our intelligence and law enforcement agencies have been relentless in their response to new and sudden challenges (Bush, 2001, Online).
Less than three days after the attack, the Secret Service held a press conference and the spokesman started out by pointing out that the Treasury Department has a strong personal agenda following the attack, since “ATF, Customs, IRS CI and the Secret Service all had facilities at the World Trade Towers that were completely destroyed by Tuesday’s terrorist actions” (2001, FAS online). The spokesman then explained that in addition to the more traditional law enforcement role, Treasury is committed to fighting terrorism with every asset that we have available and then announced that Treasury has established an inter-agency team dedicated to the disruption of terrorist fundraising. The team is designed to increase our ability to identify foreign terrorist groups, assess their sources and methods of fundraising, and provide information that will make clear to law enforcement officials how terrorist funds are moved. This team will ultimately be transformed into a permanent Foreign Terrorist Asset Tracking Center in the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control(OFAC). This is an extraordinary effort that really illustrates the Treasury Department’s creativity in developing new ways to combat terrorists (2001, FAS Online). And in a very unusual cooperative effort, the Secret Service, the FBI, and the private sector, have joined forces to create a national Cyberthreat Response and Reporting System.
The first step was a reporting procedure and guidelines for companies to report violations, and these guidelines were published in the trade journal for CIOs (CIO, 2002). The CIO Cyberthreat Response & Reporting Guidelines provide step-by-step information on how businesses should plan and respond to attacks on their information systems, including worms, viruses, hacks and other breaches. The guidelines advise CIOs and business leaders to establish a relationship with law enforcement today, before their next attack happens. The document also provides suggested points of contact, as well as an easy-to-follow report form detailing the initial information law enforcement needs to investigate.
Also, the FBI and the United States Secret Service are expanding the ways that they can share federal jurisdiction for investigating and prosecuting cybercrime across state lines. The need for cyber reporting guidelines came to the forefront at a CIO magazine conference in October 2001 when a United States Attorney addressed CIOs on law enforcement post September 11th and the need for businesses to report cybercrime to officials. Discussions are also underway for determining ways in which the Secret Service can work with the INS. As Miller (2001), points out Nearly half a billion foreigners enter the U. S.
each year, and the most stringent demand many of them will face is filling out a form asking where they’re headed; the forms are then shipped off to storage, where they probably won’t ever be seen again. What the country needs is a high-tech method of tracking foreigners as they enter and leave. Right now, the federal government doesn’t even know how many people are in the country with expired visas, let alone who they are or where they live (Miller, 2001, 21). It is safe to surmise that the Secret Service will be greatly involved in determining who’s here and why.
Some have said that the events of September 11 took the Secret Service by surprise. Indeed, authors such as Steven Emerson have been writing about Islamic terrorists in the United States since the early 1990s. In his troubling book American Jihad, Emerson details how the United States government and the Secret Service are actively monitoring terrorist cells affiliated with Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda network in eleven cities, from Florida to Boston to Denver to Houston. In January 2003, W. Ralph Basham was sworn in as the 21st Director of the United States Secret service.
Director Basham was charged with developing a post September 11th strategic plan that could meet the challenges the Secret Service face in their ever expanding mission after being realigned under the Department of Homeland Security. In his strategic plan, Director Basham addresses the Secret Service’s goals and objectives, along with the means and strategies to accomplish them. The Secret Service has three goals – the protective strategic goal, the investigative strategic goal, and the support strategic goal (Secret Service, online). The protective strategic goal is to protect the nation’s leaders, visiting world leaders, and other protectees as well as reduce threats posed by global terrorists and other adversaries. This goal is accomplished through two different objectives. The means and strategies for each of those objectives are as follows:Objective – Ensure the physical protection ofprotectees.
Means & Strategies Maintain a protective intelligence program as a critical component of the risk management process. Identify and investigate groups, individuals, and emerging technologies that may pose a threat to protectees. Formalize the risk management process as a decision-making tool to improve resource allocation decision-making. Continue to develop the National Threat Assessment Center to enhance the risk assessment process. Leverage U. S.
intelligence assets to improve early warning of threats posed by adversaries and assessments of their capabilities. Deploy countermeasures that ensure the protection of the President, Vice President, visiting foreign dignitaries, and other protectees. Enhance the ongoing protective review process, including continued review and evaluation of protective details and support staffing guidelines. Continue to assess and enhance security measures at the White House complex and other facilities under our protection.
Effectively use locally available resources when appropriate to meet mission requirements. Continue to develop and implement the Emergency Preparedness Program in compliance with statutory and executive mandates. Objective – Prevent terrorism directed toward SecretService protectees, protected facilities,citizens and visitors at events ofnational significance. Means & StrategiesContinue to refine the process by which we design, plan, and implement security for designated National Special Security Events (NSSEs). Work with external partners to prevent the use of terrorist weapons at Secret Service protected sites and against individuals receiving Secret Serviceprotection.
Maximize interagency cooperation among federal, state, and local entities to take advantage of each agency’s specific expertise and resources. Expand participation in domestic Joint Terrorism Task Forces by lending greater support in tracing terrorists’ financial assets and investigating falseidentification cases. Promote field liaison with local law enforcement to assist in preventing targeted violence. Enhance Special Event Staffing and Response Plans to include a rapid response team to gather and analyze investigative information on individuals or groups who have threatened our protectees or designated national security events.
Create an intra-departmental group, whose members are detailed to the Secret Service, to enhance the overall counterterrorism effort for National Special Security Events. The investigative strategic goal is to reduce crimes against our nation’s financial infrastructure, to include currency and financial payment systems. This goal is accomplished through four different objectives. The means and strategies for each of those objectives are as follows:Objective – Reduce losses to the public attributableto financial and electronic crimes,counterfeit currency, and identity theftcrimes that are under the jurisdiction ofthe Secret Service.
Means & StrategiesPrioritize investigative cases, focusing on:cases with a direct and obvious connection to terrorism (domestic and foreign),cases within our investigative jurisdiction that pose a threat to our nation’s critical infrastructure sectors,cases that are transnational in nature,cases that have clear national or economic security implications, andmajor interstate cases. Expand the Secret Service presence abroad, including international electronic crimes task forces (ECTFs), and use these resources as a linchpin to establishan “outer perimeter” of protection for the U. S. , allowing the prevention, detection, and disruption of potential terrorist and criminal threats, whetherto protectees, critical infrastructure, or financial payment systems. Expand our efforts in combating international counterfeiting activity to ensure worldwide confidence in U. S.
currency, in unison with the global progression of dollarization. Objective – Prevent attacks against the nation’sfinancial services industry andinfrastructure, and other related sectors. Means & StrategiesVigorously expand and develop an international network of ECTFs to detect, prevent, and investigate various forms of electronic crimes, includingpotential terrorist attacks against critical infrastructures. Implement physical and cyber security surveys for selected foreign and domestic strategic assets and facilities. To prevent fraud, recommend industry safeguards that are based on identifying and assessing systemic weaknesses.
Protect the integrity and reliability of the financial services industry through the use of ECTFs, aggressive investigation, risk assessment, information sharing, and development of safeguards through collaboration with private industry and academia. Objective – Enhance partnerships with foreign anddomestic stakeholders to reduce financialcrimes which threaten currency andfinancial systems worldwide. Means & StrategiesUse our developing national and international networks of ECTFs to prevent, detect, and investigate various forms of electronic crimes, including potential terrorists attacks against critical infrastructures and financial payment systems. Increase liaison, training, and other services to foreign and domestic financial institutions and law enforcement agencies to combat financial and electronic transnational crimes victimizing U.
S. financial institutions, businesses, and consumers. Increase communication and cooperation with members of financial services and reprographics industries, law enforcement agencies and prosecutors, and the information technology sector. Continue to educate members of Congress and their staffs regarding our foreign and domestic investigative mission.
Suggest statutory changes tomore effectively investigate and prosecute crimes under our jurisdiction. Promote public awareness of Secret Service investigative programs. Continue to act as a purveyor of “best practices” and physical/cybersecurity methodologies, and disseminate criminal intelligence information to local, state, federal, and foreign law enforcement agencies and the private sector to increase their efficiency in investigating transnational crime and securing key strategic assets in both the government and private sector. Provide training to local, state, and foreign agencies regarding counterfeit currency, assist these agencies with their sizeable local and state cases, and increase the amount of information concerning counterfeit notes that is available to our law enforcement counterparts. Objective – Aggressively support the protectiveoperations of the Secret Service withinvestigative capabilities.
Means & StrategiesFully implement the Critical Systems Protection Initiative concept at the White House complex and NSSEs, as well as at other critical venues, toaddress cybersecurity issues that have protective implications. Assess physical and cyber security for selected foreign and domestic strategic assets and facilities. Implement a protective advance methodology to identify and address potential adverse effects upon our protective mission, caused by the failure or compromise of information systems, and use Critical Systems Incident Response Teams to respond to threats against those critical systems and networks. Continue to apply computer crime initiatives to protective intelligence cases. The support strategic goal is to provide a responsive support infrastructure to meet the needs of protective and investigative operations. This goal is accomplished through five different objectives.
The means and strategies for each of those objectives are as follows:Objective – Using sound management practices, recruit,develop, and retain the best-qualified,diverse workforce that is worthy of thepublic’s trust and confidence. Means & StrategiesUse innovative human capital planning techniques to identify the skills needed to perform our mission, target applicants possessing desired skills, and expedite the hiring process without sacrificing quality. Enhance communications among all employees. Identify and reduce or eliminate barriers that inhibit potential growth or impact retention of Secret Service employees. Promote and elevate work expectations and professional conduct. Judiciously review requests for new supervisory positions, taking into consideration sound position management principles and practices.
Objective – Provide innovative training opportunitiesthat emphasize risk management and thejudgment skills needed to support ourmission. Means & StrategiesExpand the training capacity of the James J. Rowley Training Center to provide an academic environment that promotes critical thinking and innovation in the areas of physical, site and event security, threatassessments, antiterrorist intelligence techniques, emergency preparedness, criminal investigations, protection of critical financial infrastructure, andmanagement development. Establish partnerships with academic institutions and professional associations to assess, confirm, and ensure innovative training methodologies. Maximize training opportunities by using emerging technologies, such as modeling, simulation, and distance learning.
Develop and implement training programs for state, local, other federal, and foreign law enforcement in the areas of electronic crimes, counterterrorism,counterfeiting, threat assessment, and protective surveys for NSSEs. Objective – Utilize science and technology to supportthe protective and investigativeoperations of the Secret Service. Means & StrategiesPromote partnerships and representation with interagency technical working groups to include federal, state, private, and academic technicalorganizations, both domestically and internationally. Continue efforts with the reprographics industry to develop and implement a technological solution to the problem of digital counterfeiting. Substantially upgrade the information technology and communications infrastructure and enterprise application systems to enhance our ability to support the Secret Service mission, to improve system reliability, availability, and long-term survivability, and to enhance information security in a digital environment. Further develop and refine our existing database and datamining capabilities to increase our ability to link and develop investigations with other foreign, federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.
Further develop web-based information systems, such as e-library and the counterfeit note search, to enhance information sharing with the bankingindustry and other law enforcement. Develop counterfeit U. S. currency databases to track the amount and movement of known counterfeit notes and their producers, distributors, and financiers. Complete expansion of the Counterfeit Document Database and the Forensic Information System for Handwriting (FISH) to include all 50 states andlocal law enforcement to aid in the effort to identify suspected terrorists.
Pursue USSS designation as the host of a national central counterfeit documents laboratory to coordinate and support the investigations conducted by various state and federal agencies, and having central authority over all state and federal identification documents, credentials, and other governmentobligations (counterfeit and genuine). Provide forensic and audio/visual support to a multi-agency consortium of state, local and federal organizations. Make use of 3-D modeling and Simulation Laboratory (SIMLAB) capabilities to enhance future security planning and resource allocation for NSSEs and other protective venues. Expand the Counter-Surveillance Unit database initiative to more rapidly develop investigative leads or patterns indicating possible terrorist surveillance activity or pre-attack planning by a terrorist organization.
Explore options for expanding use of the expertise the USSS has developed in the areas of SmartCard/Public Key Infrastructure (PKI). Create a Secret Service “Forensic Investigative Response and Support Team” (FIRST) comprised of forensic experts in handwriting, ink and paperanalysis, latent print evaluations, video services, photography, polygraph services, audio and video enhancements, and electronic crimes. Objective – Implement a business approach in managingresources to improve oversight anddecision-making. Means & StrategiesFully integrate the strategic planning, budgeting, and evaluation processes in order to maximize our performance. Implement the business case framework for decisions on all major investments within and across organizational lines to provide the greatest return on investment. Improve/replace financial, human resource, and program performance management systems, aligning key elements, to provide better information for program performance assessments and decision-making.
Objective – Advance the Secret Service’s mission byclearly communicating the value the SecretService brings to its partners andstakeholders. Means & StrategiesEnsure that efforts to support protective and investigative programs are optimized. Through liaison activities, inform partners and stakeholders as to the substance and value of Secret Service programs and inherent expertise. The U. S. Secret Service Strategic Plan may provide the framework and the direction to meet the challenges of the future, but it is their people their expertise, their commitment, and their character that enables the Secret Service as an organization to achieve the success thatis so vital to our homeland security.
The United States Secret Service provides challenging, fast paced, and exciting employment opportunities for interested individuals. Mr. Travis Torco, of the U. S. Secret Service Honolulu Field Office, referred me to their website for further information but informed me that the requirements and conditions for employment are dependent upon the position an individual is interested in.
Special Agents must meet the following requirements:U. S. citizenship. Must be at least 21 years of age and younger than 37 at time of appointment. (1) Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university; or (2) three years of work experience in the criminal investigative or law enforcement fields that require knowledge and application of laws relating to criminal violations; or (3) and equivalent combination of education and related experience. According to the Office of Personnel Management regulations, nonqualifying law enforcement experience is as follows: Experience as a uniformed law enforcement officer where the principal duties consisted of investigations and arrests involving traffic violations, minor felonies, misdemeanors, and comparable offenses; or in which the major duties involved guarding and protecting property, preventing crimes, and/or legal research without the application of investigative techniques.
Uncorrected vision no worse than 20/60 binocular; correctable to 20/20 in each eye. (NOTE: Lasik, ALK, RK and PRK corrective eye surgeries are acceptable eye surgeries for special agent applicants provided specific visual tests are passed one year after surgery. Applicants who have undergone Lasik surgery may have visual tests three months after the surgery. ) Excellent health and physical condition. Must pass the Treasury Enforcement Agent. Complete background investigation to include in-depth interviews, drug screening, medical examination, and polygraph examination.
As special agents, demands may include but are not limited to the following:Work long hours in undesirable conditions on short notice Travel away from home for periods ranging from 1 to 30 days or possibly longer Carry a firearm while performing duties and maintain firearms proficiency Carry out assignments in the areas of protection and investigations Relocate to duty stations throughout the U. S. and abroad as organizational needs dictate Initial appointment to the special agent position is in the Excepted Service. Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must certify that they have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under Selective Service law.
Newly appointed special agents receive approximately 11 weeks of intensive training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Glynco, Georgia or Artesia, New Mexico. Upon successful completion of training at FLETC, they receive approximately 11 weeks of specialized instruction at the James J. Rowley Training Center in Laurel, Maryland and may be assigned to duty stations anywhere in the United States. Individuals interested in becoming one of the Secret Service Uniformed Division officers are required to meet the following:U. S.
citizenship. Must be at least 21 years of age and younger than 37 at time of appointment. High school diploma or equivalent. Excellent health and physical condition.
Uncorrected vision no worse than 20/60 binocular; correctable to 20/20 in each eye. (NOTE: Lasik, ALK, RK and PRK corrective eye surgeries are acceptable eye surgeries for Uniformed Division officer applicants provided specific visual tests are passed one year after surgery. Applicants who have undergone Lasik surgery may have visual tests three months after the surgery. ) Complete interviews and pass a written test. Complete background investigation to include driving record check, drug screening, medical and polygraph examinations.
Positions only available in Washington, D. C. ; reasonable moving expenses paid for out-of-area hires. The Unformed Division officer position is designated as a key position in accordance with Department of Defense Directive 1200. 7. As such, employees occupying this position will have their military status changed to either Retired Reserve or Standby Reserve, or maybe discharged, as appropriate.
As a Uniformed Division officer, demands will be required of applicants, which may include but not be limited to the following:Work long hours in undesirable conditions on short notice Travel frequently Carry a firearm while performing duties and maintain firearms proficiency Initial appointment to the Uniformed Division officer position is in the Excepted Service. Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must certify that they have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under Selective Service law. Newly appointed Uniformed Division officers receive approximately 8 weeks of intensive training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Glynco, Georgia or Artesia, New Mexico. Upon successful completion of training at FLETC, they receive approximately 11 weeks of specialized instruction at the James J. Rowley Training Center in Laurel, Maryland and are immediately assigned to a protective post. The United States Secret Service also employs individuals in non-law enforcement fields.
Professional, administrative, clerical, and technical positions require applicants to submit to urinalysis screening for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Actual appointment will be contingent upon the receipt of a negative drug test result. All Secret Service positions require top secret security clearance; and some positions require the applicant to take a polygraph examination. Applicants must be a citizen of the United States and posses the required knowledge, skills, and abilities of the respective position.
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4 November 2004.White House Kids, online http://clinton4.nara.gov/WH/kids/inside/html/spring98-2.html
