Parents say slain agent's death exposed flaws of gun-running operation

Parents say slain agent's death exposed flaws of gun-running operation
By Moni Basu, CNN
updated 6:16 PM EST, Thu February 2, 2012

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Agent Brian Terry was killed in an ambush on the Arizona-Mexico border
His death shut down a federal gun-running program, prompted a flurry of questions
His parents filed a $25 million wrongful death claim this week

(CNN) -- Brian Terry's life serves as inspiration to those who knew him. His death, a thorn in the side of the federal government.

Terry, a 40-year-old federal agent, was killed December 14, 2010, after he confronted suspected drug bandits near the Arizona-Mexico border. Two weapons found near the scene of the killing were traced to a federal operation known as Fast and Furious.

The program, started in 2009, allowed firearms to be purchased from gun stores in Arizona and taken across the Mexican border to drug cartels. The intent of the operation was to monitor the flow of weapons to their ultimate destination.

But hundreds of weapons were lost or unaccounted for. When two of them showed up near Terry's body, furor erupted, and the program folded.

Terry's grieving mother, Josephine, was incredulous that her son's life had been taken with a gun that should have been confiscated.

"I was flabbergasted. I couldn't believe it at first," she said.
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