ATF Chief Out After Bungled Sting

Kenneth Melson, who presided over a controversial gun-trafficking sting currently under investigation, has resigned as acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Melson had been under fire for the agency’s “Fast and Furious” operation, which aimed at targeting Mexican smugglers but has been linked to the death of a U.S. patrol officer. He’ll be reassigned to the department’s Office of Legal Policy. Melson isn’t the only casualty of the bungled sting: a U.S. attorney in Phoenix who helped oversee the operation has resigned as well, sources tell The Washington Post.