Editor Note: Some of the most important stories in America are the ones that rarely make the headlines. Through Untold Stories, we're bringing those stories to light.
Produced in partnership with the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA) and sponsored by the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Foundation, this two-dozen-episode series takes viewers inside federal law enforcement agencies across the nation, highlighting the men and women who serve, the missions they carry out, and the partnerships that help keep our communities and country safe.
Now midway through the series, Untold Stories has already offered an inside look at the people, programs, and critical work happening across federal law enforcement. Through exclusive interviews, behind-the-scenes access, and firsthand accounts, each episode shares the successes, challenges, innovative initiatives, and unique perspectives that often go unseen.
And there is still more to come. Join us for the latest episode here and continue following Untold Stories as we shine a light on the agencies, missions, and dedicated professionals working every day to protect our nation.
“Get down, get down, get down!”
Deputies stack up, roll, and storm through a training house as the shouts echo off the walls. It’s a glimpse of how the men and women behind the star are forged. In the latest episode of FLEOA’s Untold Stories, U.S. Marshals Service Director Gadyaces Serralta and Assistant Director Matt Hershey sit down with FLEOA National President Mat Silverman and Law Enforcement Today founder Kyle Reyes to take viewers inside an agency most Americans only think they know.
When Mat asked what it means to carry the star, Serralta didn’t hesitate. “Wearing that star, there’s just this level of respect,” he said. “You got to earn it.”
The job starts with a mission few people think about: protecting the federal judiciary. “What would a nation be without a safe judiciary?” Serralta asked. “We wouldn’t have a nation.”
Then there’s the hunt. Marshals catch more federal fugitives than any other agency, roughly 330 a day and around 123,000 a year, and they go after “the worst of the worst.” They also run the Witness Protection Program, which Serralta calls the only way to take down cartels, gangs, and organized crime. They manage the planes, cars, jewelry, and even animals seized by partners like the ATF, DEA, and FBI. They fly prisoners on JPATS, the only government-run, regularly scheduled passenger airline in the country (no exit-row seating). And when the worst-case scenario hits, they send the Special Operations Group.
The secret weapon is partnership. Thousands of task force officers stand ready across the country and beyond, making the Marshals “a small agency with a very big engine.” Through Memphis Safe and DC Safe, Serralta says local cops have gained a new respect for their federal counterparts, “because they’re seeing that we are cops just like they are.”
Earning the star isn’t easy. Of the tens of thousands who apply, only a handful graduate. When Mat asked about building the next generation of deputies, Hershey described the recruit he wants: a quiet, humble professional who thinks fast and works as a team, because a deputy days out of the academy may be the only Marshal on scene when things go sideways. “90% is mental,” he said.
Hershey is also done with “this is the way we’ve always done it.” His division is testing tactics, demanding evidence, and sending robots into the danger zone before any deputy, or dog, has to go in after an armed suspect.
For Serralta, it’s personal. After 36 years, what he thought would be the end of his career “seems like it’s a new beginning.”
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