Writing Homework Help

Assignment:

There is a clear difference in not only the authority, but in the job functions of federal and state agencies. Although they work together to combat many different types of crime and have similar structure, they are different in many ways. Please discuss the major differences and respond to classmates as required.

Reply:

Federal and State agencies differ in many different aspects although they generally work together. Federal agencies focus mainly on investigating crimes that break federal laws which apply to the entire nation including U.S territories. Federal agencies can supersede any state law enforcement agency in the U.S. but also collaborate internationally with other agencies. Our federal laws are formed from the United States constitution (Diffen, (n.d). Federal agencies include but are not limited to the FBI, DEA, U.S. Marshals, ATF, U.S Customs and Border Protection, etc. Counterterrorism, war on drugs, transportation of federal prisoners, Cyber-Based attacks, Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives are just some of the issues that federal agencies under the Department of Justice handle.

Forty-nine of the 50 U.S. states have a primary state law enforcement agency” (Dempsey, Forst, 2015, p. 55), which generally focus on crimes that break state laws and assisting with the highway patrol, enforcing county laws, assisting county police with rural areas, and assisting with the investigation, and ultimately the prevention of crimes committed in that state. Keep in mind, state laws change from one state to another whereas federal laws do not; these laws are unbending for the entire country.

Personally, working for a Federal government agency myself, I have seen postal inspectors investigate citizens and employees alike. Whatever the charge and for the most part, harsher penalties seem to apply in federal charges rather than state charges.

In conclusion, federal and state agencies assist each other when called upon but they differ in many different aspects of what their main job functions are. Simply put, Federal agencies enforce and protect federal laws meanwhile state agencies enforce and protect state laws.

Reply:

As mentioned there are many similarities between state and federal agencies. However, there are clear differences of the authority and job functions of the two agencies. Authority is defined as “the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience”. Law enforcement agencies have a set authority over a citizens but are often expressed differently between federal and state levels. Federal agencies often have authority over those who have committed federal crimes such as piracy or counterfeiting and covers across the United States. On the other hand, state agencies have authority over those who have committed state level crimes such as robbery in the respective state. The job function of the two are different as well. The job function of federal agencies are broken up among agencies. For example, the DEA focuses and specializes on enforcing laws involving drugs such as drug trafficking while the ATF focuses more on ballistics, alcohol, and tobacco. State agencies job functions are commonly more broad and covers more areas. For example, the Georgia State police can respond to a wide-range of incidents including robbery, traffic collisions, or even hostage situations but in the respective state. All of the agencies have their roles and their own way of doing things but they all serve to prevent and stop crime.