Introduction

In April 2014, near Bunkerville, Nevada, Cliven Bundy and hundreds of armed supporters faced off with federal law enforcement officers who were removing his trespassing cattle from federal lands. Bundy described himself as the victim of a rogue federal government that trampled the US Constitution and deprived him of basic rights, and he was ready to “take this country back by force.”...

Breaking the code of silence: who are the women reporting sex-based discrimination in federal regulatory agencies?

PurposeThis study examines women's reporting behaviors in US federal law enforcement and provides an exploratory analysis of individual and occupational variables to describe the women who respond assertively to reporting unlawful workplace behaviors.Design/methodology/approachSurvey responses are collected from sworn female officers employed by two US federal law enforcement agencies who responded “yes” to having experienced sexual harassment (n = 368) and/or sexual discrimination (n = 410) in the workplace.FindingsThe findings suggest that individual characteristics such as age, as well as occupational variables such as grade level and tenure duration, significantly impact assertive reporting behaviors for sex-based discrimination.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample represents those respondents from only two organizations, limiting the sampling frame and generalizability.Practical implicationsWhile these findings are not promising for junior women working in law enforcement, they have important practical implications for agency decision-makers who want to eliminate or reduce unlawful behavior in the workplace.Originality/valueMost of the literature on reporting sex-based discrimination, including sexual harassment, has focused on why women do not report unlawful behaviors in the workplace, while a limited number of scholars have identified who will respond more assertively when encountering such discriminatory behavior. This article builds on the latter by examining additional occupational and individual variables to the discussion.

The Branch Davidians and Waco

The chapter examines the how and why of the events that led to a fifty-one day siege and ended with the deaths of over seventy Branch Davidians in April 1993. The primary sources demonstrate how the Branch Davidians were constructed as a dangerous “cult,” the ways federal law enforcement relied on this stereotype, the resulting misunderstandings that occurred in the negotiations as a result of this stereotype, and the deadly consequences. The primary sources, including media portrayals, FBI negotiation transcripts, and Koresh’s writings, provide readers with opportunities to explore the tragic results of utilizing the “cult” stereotype. The chapter ends with various perspectives on why Waco happened.

Does Agency Type Matter for Female Federal Agents? Exploring the Offices of Inspectors General

Recent scholarship has examined the barriers women experience in well-known federal law enforcement agencies. However, there is scant research that examines a unique subgrouping of agents within the federal Offices of Inspectors General (OIGs). Drawing on survey data from 249 female agents, this study compares responses between female agents working in the OIGs and female agents working in all other federal law enforcement agencies to differentiate their experiences. Findings suggest that female agents in the OIGs experience less occupational barriers, namely, reduced number of relocations and incidences of sexual harassment, as well as higher agency adoption of family-friendly policies to promote work–life balance, resulting in women’s higher representation at those agencies.