Dan Emmett was just eight years old when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. The events surrounding the president's death shaped the course of young Emmett's life as he set a goal of becoming a U.S. Secret Service agent—one of a special group of people willing to trade their lives for that of the president, if necessary.


Within Arm's Length is a revealing and compelling inside look at the Secret Service and the elite Presidential Protective Division (PPD). Using stories from some of the author's more high-profile assignments in his twenty-one years of service, Emmett describes the professional, physical, and emotional challenges faced by Secret Service agents. Included are never-before-discussed topics such as the complicated relationship between presidents, first ladies, and their agents; the inner workings of Secret Service protective operations; and the seldom-mentioned challenges of the complex Secret Service cultural issues faced by an agent's family.