An FBI veteran has been named to head the U.S. Border Patrol, bringing in an outsider to run an agency traditionally led by agents who rise through the ranks.
Mark Morgan, who briefly led the internal affairs department at the Border Patrol's parent agency, has been chosen to oversee a multibillion-dollar annual budget and about 20,000 agents who patrol the nation's land borders with Canada and Mexico and its maritime boundaries.
Customs and Border Protection Commissioner R. Gil Kerlikowske informed staff Monday in a memo obtained by The Associated Press.
In 2014, Kerlikowske tapped Morgan to help review complaints of excessive force and misconduct by Customs and Border Protection employees.
Morgan replaces Michael Fisher, who retired last year.
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