Rubuta ci gaba ga wannan sakin layi - A matsayin Kwamandan, ya kasance a New York Navy Yard daga 1841 zuwa 1843, sa'an nan kuma ya umurci Gulf of Mexico da West Indies daga 1843 zuwa 1845. A lokacin yakin Amurka da Mexico, Sands ya umurci sojojin Amurka. Ya shiga cikin kama Alvarado, Tabasco, da Laguna, a takaice yana aiki a matsayin Gwamnan Laguna. Ya kuma taimaka a cikin Siege na Veracruz
da kuma kama Tampico da Tuxpan a 1847. Sands ya sami yabo da yawa don rawar da ya taka a cikin waɗannan alkawurran.