The Witness Security Program WITSEC

Congress created the federal witness protection program in the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970 to persuade witnesses to testify against the Mafia, who often feared being killed. The program, run by the U.S. Marshals Service since 1971 and designed by Justice Department lawyer Gerald Shur, protects witnesses and their immediate families when their lives are in danger because of their testimony in serious cases involving organized crime, drug trafficking, terrorism, gangs, and other violent crimes.

Candidates are recommended by prosecutors and approved by the Justice Department's Office of Enforcement Operations after a review that includes a psychological assessment. Participants are moved to new communities with new names and documents, receive help with housing, jobs, and living expenses until they become self-sufficient, and are guarded by deputy marshals during trials. About 19,100 witnesses and family members have been protected since 1971, and the Marshals say no participant who followed the rules has been harmed.

Most participants are not innocent bystanders but cooperating defendants with criminal pasts, which has drawn criticism when some committed new crimes under their new identities. Victims have sometimes struggled to collect court judgments from protected witnesses, and family members have described the strain of cutting off contact with relatives. Supporters say the program has been essential to convicting organized crime leaders and violent gangs that would otherwise silence witnesses.