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Secret Service Agent Found Passed Out In Miami Won't Be Charged

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – A U.S. Secret Service agent found passed out on a sidewalk in downtown Miami last October will not face charges for the incident.

Agent Aaron Francis Engler was first seen by Miami police officers early on a Friday morning in October. When the officers checked on the man, he had bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and a strong odor of alcohol.

Police said Engler started throwing his arms around while he and started to fight with officers, the report said. The officers then took Engler to the ground and handcuffed him. As an officer searched Engler's pockets, he discovered Engler's Secret Service identification.

Engler was charged with two misdemeanors, disorderly intoxication and resisting arrest without violence, and released on his own recognizance.

Prosecutors said that comparing Engler's actions and case law, "Mr. Engler's conduct does not constitute disorderly intoxication. Mr. Engler did not endanger the safety of another person, nor was there a public disturbance."

Prosecutors also said the reason one of the officers patted down Agent Engler for weapons, "is suspect…Therefore, the frisking of Mr. Engler for weapons was likely improper and not founded on a reasonable articulated suspicion. A legal argument could be made that Mr. Engler's actions, considered to be resisting, were a reaction to an unlawful search. This makes proving the State's case beyond a reasonable doubt highly unlikely."

The arrest of Engler last year was the second major incident to give the Secret Service a black eye. In April 2012, the agency was involved in a prostitution scandal in Colombia during the Summit of the Americas.

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