Federal Troops
In response to a request for assistance from the Geneva County Sheriff's Office and Samson Police, federal troops from nearby Fort Rucker were deployed to the streets of Samson. They manned traffic stops and guarded a makeshift morgue. An Army investigation later determined this to be in violation of the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits federal troops from performing law enforcement actions. The Army took administrative action against at least one officer.
Read more about this topic: Geneva County Massacre
Famous quotes containing the words federal and/or troops:
“The Federal Constitution has stood the test of more than a hundred years in supplying the powers that have been needed to make the Central Government as strong as it ought to be, and with this movement toward uniform legislation and agreements between the States I do not see why the Constitution may not serve our people always.”
—William Howard Taft (1857–1930)
“O, now for ever
Farewell the tranquil mind, farewell content,
Farewell the plumèd troops and the big wars
That makes ambition virtue! O, farewell!”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)