FBI’s S.F. Field Office Has First Female Chief: IWU ALUM

 (BCN) SAN FRANCISCO A veteran of 27 years with the FBI has become the first female chief of the agency’s San Francisco field office.
Charlene Thornton, 52, took over her new assignment as special agent in charge of the regional office Tuesday.
She will supervise 382 agents who investigate federal crimes and terrorism in 15 counties in northern and central coastal California, from the Oregon border to Monterey.
The field office has nine satellite offices in Eureka, Santa Rosa, San Rafael, Oakland, Concord, Hayward, Palo Alto, San Jose and Monterey in addition to its main office in San Francisco.
The new chief was previously assistant director of the FBI’s inspection division, evaluating FBI programs and investigating employee misconduct, at FBI headquarters in Washington D.C.
In the San Francisco office, she will replace Joseph Ford, who was promoted to the job of associate deputy FBI director.
Agent Joseph Schadler, a spokesman for the field office, said the organization focuses on investigation in three areas.
The first is violations of federal criminal law on subjects ranging from securities fraud to mail and wire fraud, public corruption and organized crime.
The other two areas are terrorism and counter-intelligence, or the investigation of spying by foreign operatives.
Thornton was raised in Wisconsin. She received her college degree from Indiana Wesleyan University, a law degree from Indiana University School of Law and a master’s degree in taxation from the University of San Diego School of Law.
She was named chief of the FBI’s field office in Birmingham, Ala., in 1999 and chief of the Phoenix office in 2002.
She was promoted to the inspection division in Washington in 2004.

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