Michele Leonhart
| Michele Leonhart | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration | |
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In office November 10, 2007 – May 14, 2015 Acting: November 10, 2007 – December 22, 2010 |
|
| President |
George W. Bush Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Karen Tandy |
| Succeeded by | Chuck Rosenberg (Acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 27, 1956 |
| Alma mater | Bemidji State University |
Michele Marie Leonhart (born February 27, 1956) is an American career law enforcement officer and the former Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). After the resignation of Administrator Karen P. Tandy in the fall of 2007, Leonhart also served as Acting Administrator of the DEA. On February 2, 2010, President Barack Obama nominated Leonhart for the position of DEA Administrator.
Leonhart's tenure as DEA Administrator was marked with controversy and scandals including a prostitution scandal; by the end of her service in April 2015, a bipartisan group of lawmakers declared that they had no confidence in her leadership. On April 21, she conveyed to Attorney General Eric Holder that she intended to resign the following month.
Leonhart graduated from Bemidji State University in 1978 with a degree in criminal justice, and began her career in law enforcement as a patrol officer in Baltimore, Maryland before entering the DEA in late 1980 as a Special Agent. She became DEA's first female Special Agent in Charge in 1997.President George W. Bush announced his intention to nominate Leonhart as Deputy Administrator on July 31, 2003, and submitted her nomination to the United States Senate on October 3, 2003. The Senate confirmed her nomination on March 8, 2004. On April 15, 2008, the White House announced that President Bush intended to nominate Leonhart to succeed Tandy as the next Administrator of DEA. Leonhart's nomination was received by the Senate the same day and referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee. However, the committee did not hold any hearings on Leonhart's nomination, and on January 2, 2009, the nomination was returned to the President under the provisions of Senate Rule XXXI, paragraph 6 of the Standing Rules of the Senate pursuant to sine die adjournment at the end of the 110th Congress.
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