Sir, let me see your silent partner card.
Yes, sir.
Tell me about your silent partner.
Sir, Agent James P. Epling was born March 9, 1979.
He entered on to duty January 13th...
They recovered his body three days later approximately...
On March 9, 1979, James P. Epling was born in Bremerton, Washington.
Agent Epling entered on duty on January 13, 2003.
He was graduate of class 537 of the Border Patrol Academy.
James, Jimmy as we all knew him, he was just an all-around great guy.
Jimmy was one of those kind of guys who made everybody his friend.
On December 16, 2003, at approximately 7:00 PM,
after responding to sensor activity along the Colorado River near Andrade,California,
Agent Epling was reported missing.
I answered the phone, he tells me over the phone he's like hey...
I think we lost Jimmy.
I'm like what are you talking about lost Jimmy, it didn't make sense
and then he tells me that Jimmy went in after a group
on the river and they can't find him.
Agent Epling had apprehended two Chinese illegal immigrants
and bravely rescued another from drowning in the Colorado River.
A massive rescue operation by BORSTAR, as well as multiple local, state, federal,
tribal and foreign agencies was immediately initiated.
His wife knew he was missing and everything
and so myself and Ramsey and some other classmates,
we stayed there through the night. I mean, it wasn't a -
I guess, we weren't really really worried that something bad was going
to happen, we were just more anticipating the phone call
that hey you know Jimmys been found.
It was around maybe 5:30 or so, I dozed off for a little bit.
Woke up around 6:00 and still nobody had heard anything
and that's kind of when it hit me that you know
this is not really good, something really bad has happened.
On December 19, 2003, at approximately 7:15 PM, with
the aid of a underwater camera, Agent Epling's body was located
29 feet deep in the Colorado River.
The investigation revealed that Agent Epling died
as a result of an accidental drowning.
He had a big heart, he told me stories in the short time that
he was working that one time they didn't make it to a young
immigrant that died very, very close to the time that she was
found, and he felt that if he ever had the opportunity
to prevent that from happening again, that he would never lose
another person and that played a big role in the day that he died.
The impact of his death really hit home
when a little more that one month later on January 28, 2004
his son James was born.
That's the blessing for me is that when I need that reminder
I just look at them and I don't feel so sad.
Anybody who has ever seen a picture of him just looks at them
and they know that he's their dad.
I wish we had known each other longer,
I wish, you know, he was here today.
Jimmy's life, there was a ton of meaning, there was a ton of purpose
and it was cut way too short.
He loved his job.
He cared about his family and his wife and his children.
You know, I mean, he was just one of those kind of people
that you know, you miss every single day.
James P. Epling was the first Border Patrol Agent to die
in the line of duty following the formation of CBP.
We continue to honor his sacrifice and the legacy of all the men
and women who have lost their lives in the line of duty
and who have served our nation proudly.
As Police Week approaches this year, we demonstrate our
profound gratitude to James P. Epling and all of our fallen heroes,
as well as show our enduring support for
their beloved surviving family members.