James Blackburn Adams (December 21, 1926 – April 25, 2020) was an American attorney, politician, and two-time associate director of the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

Early life and education

James B. Adams was born in

Corsicana, Texas Corsicana is a city in Navarro County, Texas, United States. It is located on Interstate 45, 56 miles northeast of Waco, Texas. The population was 23,770 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Navarro County, and an important Agri-busines ...

in 1926. He served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

as a Japanese translator, before returning to Texas to obtain a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

degree from

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the ...

and a law degree from

Baylor Law School Baylor Law School is the oldest law school in Texas. Baylor Law School is affiliated with Baylor University and located in Waco, Texas. The school has been accredited by the American Bar Association since 1931 and has been a member of the Associat ...

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In January 2007, Adams received the Baylor Distinguished Alumni Award.

Career

After graduating from law school, Adams became a prosecuting attorney. He was elected to the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abo ...

in 1950. Adams took office in 1951 as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, and resigned his seat later that year to join the

. Adams was succeeded in the Texas House by W. H. Gant. As an FBI special agent, Adams served in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

, and the Administrative Services Division. In 1959, he was appointed assistant special agent in charge of

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

and in 1972 he was promoted to special agent in charge of

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

. In 1973, he was appointed assistant director of the Office of Planning and Evaluation and became assistant to the director/deputy associate director for investigations the following year. In early 1977, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Clarence M. Kelley announced his intention to retire. On September 30, 1977, President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 76th governor of Georgia from 1 ...

nominated Judge

Frank Minis Johnson Frank Minis Johnson Jr. (October 30, 1918 – July 23, 1999) was a United States district judge and United States Circuit Judge serving 1955 to 1999 on the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, United States Court of Ap ...

of the

United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama The United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama (in case citations, M.D. Ala.) is a federal court in the Eleventh Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appea ...

to the post. However Johnson developed severe health problems and Carter withdrew the nomination in December. Carter nominated then-judge on the

United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit (in case citations, 8th Cir.) is a United States federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the following United States district courts: * Eastern District of Arkansas * Western Dist ...

William H. Webster William Hedgcock Webster (born March 6, 1924) is an American attorney and jurist who most recently served as chair of the Homeland Security Advisory Council from 2005 until 2020. He was a United States district judge of the United States Distr ...

, in January 1978. Adams served as Acting Director of the FBI from Kelley's retirement on February 15 to 23, 1978, when Webster was sworn in. Adams retired from the FBI on May 11, 1979. He then returned to Texas, where he served as Director of the

Texas Department of Public Safety The Department of Public Safety of the State of Texas, commonly known as the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), is a department of the state government of Texas. The DPS is responsible for statewide law enforcement and driver license admini ...

from 1980 to 1987.

Controversies

While Director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, Adams authorized an investigation into the District Attorney of McLennan County, Vic Feazell. Feazell had initiated an investigation into the Texas Rangers who had relied on the unreliable confessions of Henry Lee Lucas to close over 300 homicide investigations across the United States despite some confessions being clearly false. Adams authorized the investigation into Feazell as retribution for questioning the Texas Rangers, who were under Adams' authority. Following a raid of Feazell's home and office, he was charged with bribery, but eventually acquitted at trial.

Personal life

Adams was married to Ione LaRae Winistorfer from September 1955 to his death on April 25, 2020, aged 93. Flags on Texas state and federal government buildings were lowered to half-staff to commemorate Adams.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, James B. 1926 births Baylor Law School alumni Deputy Directors of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Directors of the Federal Bureau of Investigation 2020 deaths Democratic Party members of the Texas House of Representatives Military personnel from Texas People from Corsicana, Texas Politicians from San Antonio Texas lawyers 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American lawyers Japanese–English translators American translators United States Army personnel of World War II