An exclusive group of military veterans has been deployed again to fight domestic enemies. Five years ago, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE.) started to discreetly train a select team of injured, wounded, or sick military veterans to investigate child exploitation cases.
The veterans are tasked with removing photos off hard drives involving child pornography investigations. They then assist in identifying perpetrators and build evidence for arrests.
“It is a battle. It is a war. And it needs to be,” said Daniel Ragsdale, ICE. Deputy Director.
A Sense of Purpose Restored
Over 100 veterans have been educated on computer forensics since 2013. They take an 11-week program to locate in Washington D.C. and our taught by H.E.R.O. Child Rescue Corps. This well-rounded training does not end there. The veterans are then enrolled in a nearly year-long internship taking place in ICE field offices located around the country.
Often when soldiers return home after being deployed, they yearn for a sense of purpose in civilian life. Many of the veterans in this program join for that reason.
#ICEintheNews: "A Specially Selected Group of Wounded Warriors Find a New Mission: Hunting Child Predators" (via @townhallcom) https://t.co/dlU9PGFOhG
— ICE (@ICEgov) February 14, 2020
Chris Wooten, a U.S. Army ranger, was involved in a helicopter crash that left him injured. He was serving with a special operations regiment while on his fifth tour in Iraq and Afghanistan. Wooten ultimately decided he believed that this program could give him that longing sense of purpose and do something honorable like when he was in the military.
“I did have a lot of buddies who weren’t able to make it home that were killed overseas or even individuals that took their own lives when they made it back just because they didn’t have that sense of purpose anymore,” he relayed.
ICE Offers Another Heroic Chance
These brave veterans are tackling another heroic feat to make our country safer. While they may not be able to serve in the military physically, their time and energy are still being used to help the people of the United States.
“I think this opportunity, even though we’re all wounded and can’t do our military job anymore, that this program allows us to serve our country again, and not only that but help save some kids,” Wooten continued.
Not an Easy Task
This role is by no means easy. For the first year, the veterans are not paid, have to work with agents to locate suspects and build strong cases. They usually encounter traumatic aspects of the job as well. Sifting through violent content and other graphic information for clues about the abuser, victim, and location are a normal part of the role. The program quite often leads to job opportunities from ICE.
ICE Deputy Director, Daniel Ragsdale, that the scale of this work should be looked at as a war, because it is a battle between good and evil.
“It’s daunting to see case after case after case… when you see 100-year sentences or multiple life sentences,” Ragsdale told the graduates. “Unfortunately, it’s still not enough. It’s certainly not tipping the scale to dissuade people who abuse children.”
Programs like H.E.R.O.s brings back a sense of purpose to our veterans in a helpful way to society.
I keep warning not to detain illegal aliens in this country, but rather, turned them around and send them right back to where they came from. And yes, I don’t give a damn for illegal aliens who cross our borders illegally. And yes; make all effort to round up ALL illegal aliens in this country and send them back immediately!
Illegal aliens are a slap on the face of our earlier immigrants who came to our country legally, and not only that; they attended night school after a hard days work to learn American history, the Constitution, Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence in preparation for their citizenship and the right to vote. We don’t need parasites in America!
MSGT JOHN CORREA
USAF (RET)