United States Marshal’s Office

 The United States Marshal’s Office (USMO) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The USMO is a bureau within the U.S. Department of Public Safety & Civil Defense, operating under the direction of the U.S. Secretary for Public Safety & Civil Defense, but serves as the enforcement arm of the United States federal courts to ensure the effective operation of the judiciary and integrity of the Federal Constitution.

The Marshal’s Office is primarily responsible for the protection of the Governor-General, Senators and Representatives in Congress, Federal judges and other Federal judicial personnel, the administration of fugitive operations, the management of criminal assets, the operation of the United States Federal Witness Protection Program and the Marshal Prisoner and Alien Transportation System, the execution of federal arrest warrants, and the protection of senior government officials through the Office of Protective Operations.

The United States Marshal’s Office is not a unified agency in the literal sense. Rather, it is divided into fifty-six autonomous field offices, one in and for each of the fifty-six States and Territories; and each field office of the USMO serves as the enforcement arm of the local Circuit of the U.S. Federal Court located in said State or Territory. Furthermore, the local arm of the Marshal’s Office in each State and Territory also functions as the preeminent Federal law enforcement agency in that jurisdiction. In this sense, the United States Marshal’s Office is, to all intents and purposes, the Federal-level equivalent to a Sheriff’s Office in the States.