Secret Service Takes A Hit

            An article by Michael D. Shear that was published in the New York Times on September 20^th, 2014, stated that the secret service is being reviewed due to a breach in white house security last week. The agency responsible for protecting our commander and chief came under fire in the last few days following an intruder entering the white house. A man was able to climb the white house fence and even entered the white house through the front door before being apprehended by agents in the grand entryway. This is the same door that the president regularly uses to greet foreign representatives. Luckily, the president and his daughters had left the white house a few minutes prior to the occurrence for a weekend vacation at Camp David and Mrs. Obama was not home either. Agents had begun running towards the man as soon as they saw him within the perimeter, however they held their fire due to the fact the man wasn’t visibly armed. While the agency has said that it is not out of the ordinary for people to make it over the white house fence, none have made it into the building.

Criticisms have poured in from those in congress, as well as different agencies and citizens all over the country who hold the firm belief that this intrusion is entirely unacceptable. In response to the incident, the Secret Service has launched a thorough review to revisit their protocol and determine how to prevent similar threats in the future. They plan to conduct a series of interviews and a survey of the location involved. The hope is that the Secret Service will be able to learn enough from this event to prevent any more people illegally entering the White House grounds. The decision by the agency not to use any form of potentially lethal force against this man sharply contrasts the actions taken by the local police force. It was just a year ago that local police shot and killed a woman who had crashed her car into the white house gate. The woman was not visibly armed but did use her vehicle in a threatening manner. While the killing of the woman received mixed reviews from the public, the threat was handled in a way that was seen as justified at the time. It seems fair to presume that anyone who is sprinting towards the white house does not have good intentions and is a definite threat to the safety of the president.

 The agency declared that although they are happy with the arrest of the infiltrator, he should have never been allowed to get close enough to the house to enter the premises. This presents a rather difficult issue for the agency to resolve. Currently the agents are told not to fire if a trespasser is visibly unarmed. It appears that the practiced policies of the agency are not adequately serving their purpose. It may be time to consider using lethal force against trespassers. The threat of lethal force would likely prevent any further attempts at trespassing on White House property. On the other hand, perhaps it is time to look at alternatives to lethal force such as the methods used to protect our foreign embassies. There are many options available for subduing perpetrators that would not result in fatalities. Many embassies have had success using electric perimeters and rubber bullets. The Secret Service should really consider looking into these alternatives as they would likely produce substantial results. In addition to expanding the methods used to keep trespassers out, the agency should consider having more men patrol the perimeter. It is my strong belief that if they can take advantage of alternative options while having more agents on the ground, they will be able to hinder any more intrusions and keep our president much safer.

Shear, Michael, and Steve Kenny. "Breach Prompts Review of White House Security." The New York Times. The New York Times, 20 Sept. 2014. Web. 22 Sept. 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/21/us/politics/intruder-white-house.html?ref=politics&_r=0>.