The Fugitive Investigative Strike Team, or FIST operations were a series of operations conducted by the United States Marshals to capture violent fugitive

Fugitive

A fugitive is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from private slavery, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals...

s wanted by State and Federal law enforcement agencies in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Nine operations were conducted between the years of 1981 and 1986.

History

In October 1979, the Attorney General transferred the responsibility of investigating and monitoring certain fugitives from the Federal Bureau of Investigation

Federal Bureau of Investigation

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...

 to the U.S. Marshals Service. 105 U.S. Marshal Deputies were trained as Enforcement Specialists who would oversee investigation and apprehension of fugitives in their respective districts.

In order to support these deputies, the Marshals Service created the Fugitive Investigative Strike Team concept. Fugitive Investigation Strike Teams were meant to bolster districts experiencing a heavy load of fugitive activity. The FIST was made up of a number of Investigators who could be deployed in operations to any district in the country in order to investigate and quickly apprehend fugitives. The primary targets of these operations were "Class 1" offenders, which included escaped federal prisoners, bail jumpers, parole

Parole

Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...

 violators and probation

Probation

Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...

 violators.

The FIST worked primarily in the United States but also collaborated with foreign officials to apprehend international fugitives, notably in the Caribbean

Caribbean

The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...

.

Operations

Nine FIST operations were conducted over five years in Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, the New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

 states, Washington D.C., Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

 and the Southwest United States. The operations often included stings, such as the Puño Airlines

Puño Airlines

In 1985, the Fugitive Investigative Strike Team VIII, part of the United States Marshals Service, set up Puño Airlines, a front organization to lure wanted criminals into the open where they could be arrested – by sending a letter suggesting the fugitive had won a free flight, a weekend in the...

 sting.

Operation	Outcome
FIST I	FIST I was a trial program conducted in the Southern District of Florida, which encompasses Miami. The operation lasted five weeks, starting on October 6, 1981. 76 fugitive felons were arrested.
FIST II	The FIST II operation was conducted between December 1981 and February 1982 in Los Angeles Los Ángeles Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants... , California. 102 fugitive felons were arrested.
FIST III	FIST III was conducted in the New York New York City New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...  Metropolitan Area for ten weeks, starting April 13, 1982. 303 fugitive felons were arrested.
FIST IV	FIST IV was conducted in the Washington, D.C. area between September 7 through November 18, 1982. 614 arrests were made.
FIST V	FIST V was conducted for ten weeks throughout Michigan Michigan Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake".... . The operation began in mid 1983 and 928 arrests were made.
FIST VI	FIST VI was a ten week operation conducted in the State of California which resulted in 2,116 arrests
FIST VII	The FIST VII operation resulted in the arrest of 3,309 fugitive felons. It was conducted in Connecticut Connecticut Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately... , Delaware Delaware Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania... , Maryland Maryland Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east... , Massachusetts Massachusetts The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010... , New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware... , New York New York New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east... , Pennsylvania Pennsylvania The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...  and Rhode Island Rhode Island The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area... . The operation lasted for eight weeks, ending on November 20, 1984.
FIST VIII	FIST VIII was conducted in Florida and the Caribbean in the spring of 1985. 3,816 fugitives were arrested.
FIST IX	FIST IX was conducted in Arizona Arizona Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix... , California, New Mexico New Mexico New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S... , Texas Texas Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...  and Mexico Mexico The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of... , beginning on February 18, 1986 and lasting eight weeks. More than 3,500 fugitives were arrested.