Police organisation
United States Marshals Service
The enforcement arm of the United States federal courts — a federal agency defined by its relationship to the judiciary rather than by a territory.
At a glance
- Official name
- United States Marshals Service (USMS)
- System
- United States
- Level of government
- Federal
- Kind of body
- Specialist national service
- Status
- Currently operating
- Official website
- https://www.usmarshals.gov/ — confirmed against the organisation’s own pages on 24 July 2026.
- Facts last checked against sources
- 13 September 2026
What it is
The Marshals Service protects the federal judiciary, apprehends federal fugitives with the broadest arrest authority among federal law-enforcement agencies, houses and transports federal prisoners, manages seized assets, and operates the Witness Security Program. Where fugitives are concerned it ASSISTS state and local agencies rather than commanding them — which is the general shape of United States federal law enforcement, and the reason no federal agency can be described as being in charge of American policing.
What it covers
Federal. Its work follows the federal courts and federal offences, not a territory of its own.
Broad responsibilities
- Protecting the federal judiciary
- Apprehending federal fugitives
- Housing and transporting federal prisoners
- Managing seized assets
- Operating the Witness Security Program
Elsewhere on this site
- National Law Enforcement Museum — the museum, archive or collection that holds this organisation’s history
- Who polices what — how United States is structured, against other systems
Other organisations to compare
- New York City Police Department — United States
- California Highway Patrol — United States
Where this connects
Institutions: National police.
Sources
What We Do — Duties and Operations, U.S. Marshals Service
United States Marshals Service (usmarshals.gov) · Government publication · link verified 2026-07-24
The agency's own description. Supports that the U.S. Marshals Service is the enforcement arm of the federal courts, and that its duties include protecting the federal judiciary, apprehending federal fugitives (with the broadest arrest authority among federal law-enforcement agencies), housing and transporting federal prisoners, managing seized assets and operating the Witness Security Program; and that it ASSISTS state and local agencies with fugitives rather than commanding them. Supports the federal judicial-enforcement role only; not operational detail.