Family of slain Border Patrol agent presses to unseal Fast and Furious records

More than six years after a U.S. Border Patrol agent was murdered with a firearm from an Arizona gun-running scandal, members of his family are asking President Trump to release records that were sealed by the Obama administration.

In testimony Wednesday before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Robert Heyer, a cousin who oversees the foundation named for agent Brian Terry, said it is “time for the dirty little secrets of Fast and Furious to be exposed.”

“We urge the Trump administration and the Department of Justice to revisit the claim of executive privilege,” Heyer added in his written statement. “The American public deserves to see the documents previously sealed by executive order, and for those documents to be turned over to congressional investigators.”

Heyer’s testimony came as the committee released a new report — based on previously sealed records — that describes an orchestrated effort by former president Barack Obama’s Justice Department to conceal any link between agent Brian Terry’s death and the botched firearms case.

Although many key documents are still missing, the report says, new records show Justice Department administrators sought to cover up the Fast and Furious scandal while viewing Terry’s family members as a “public relations nuisance” rather than victims.

Heyer and Josephine Terry, the slain agent’s mother, were among several who testified before the House panel. Afterward, Heyer said he’s been frustrated that the Justice Department and White House under Trump still have not released all records from Fast and Furious.

“He made promises to the family during the campaign to ensure that all the families’ inquiries are answered,” Heyer said of the president. “It’s disappointing we have a new attorney general and yet the bureaucracy of the Department of Justice continues to limit information. … Make those documents available.”

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