U.S. Marshals (film)

U.S. Marshals is a 1998 American action thriller film directed by Stuart Baird. The storyline was conceived from a screenplay written by Roy Huggins and John Pogue. The film is a sequel to the 1993 motion picture The Fugitive, which in turn was based on the 1960s television series of the same name, created by Huggins. The story does not involve the character of Dr. Richard Kimble portrayed by Harrison Ford in the initial film. Instead, the plot centers on United States Deputy Marshal Sam Gerard, once again played by Tommy Lee Jones, as he and his team pursue another fugitive, Mark Warren, played by Wesley Snipes, who attempts to elude government officials following an international conspiracy scandal. Several of the main cast from the previous film who portrayed Deputy Marshals reprise their roles in the sequel. The cast also features Robert Downey, Jr., Joe Pantoliano, Daniel Roebuck, Tom Wood and LaTanya Richardson.

The film was a co-production between the motion picture studios of Warner Bros. and Kopelson Entertainment. Theatrically, it was commercially distributed by Warner Bros. and by the Warner Home Video division for home media markets. On March 10, 1998, the original motion picture soundtrack was released by the Varèse Sarabande music label. The soundtrack was composed and orchestrated by musician Jerry Goldsmith.

United States Marshals Service

The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a U.S. federal law enforcement agency within the U.S. Department of Justice (see 28 U.S.C. § 561). The Marshals Service is the oldest American federal law enforcement agency. The U.S. Marshals office was created by the Judiciary Act of 1789. The Marshals Service is part of the executive branch of government, and is the enforcement arm of the U.S. federal courts. The Marshals Service is the primary agency for fugitive operations, responsible for prisoner transport, the protection of officers of the court, and for the effective operation of the judiciary. The Marshals Service operates the Witness Protection Program, and serves federal level arrest warrants.

History

Origins

The American colonies did not have an equivalent office, so Congress in 1789 used English Admiralty precedents to appoint federal marshals as an officer of the district United States federal court.

The office of United States Marshal was created by the First Congress. President George Washington signed the Judiciary Act into law on September 24, 1789. The Act provided that the United States Marshal's primary function was to execute all lawful warrants issued to him and under the authority of the United States. The law defined marshals as officers of the courts charged with assisting federal courts in their law-enforcement functions: