Mark J. Sullivan
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Mark J. Sullivan is a former federal law enforcement agent who served as the 22nd Director of the
United States Secret Service The United States Secret Service (USSS or Secret Service) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security tasked with conducting criminal investigations and providing protection to American political leaders, thei ...
from May 31, 2006, to March 27, 2013. Sullivan succeeded W. Ralph Basham and was succeeded by Julia Pierson.


Early life

Born to Francis and Clare Sullivan in
Arlington, Massachusetts Arlington is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The town is six miles (10 km) northwest of Boston, Massachusetts, Boston, and its population was 46,308 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Europe ...
, Sullivan is the oldest of six children. He attended
Saint Agnes School In Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Anglican, Oriental Orth ...
, then
Arlington Catholic High School Arlington Catholic High School (ACHS) is a coeducational Catholic high school in Arlington, Massachusetts. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston and serves grades 9-12. History The members of St. Agnes Parish, a Catholic chur ...
, and received his B.A. in
criminal justice Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the rehabilitation of offenders, preventing other ...
from
Saint Anselm College Saint Anselm College is a private Benedictine liberal arts college in Goffstown, New Hampshire, United States. Founded in 1889, it is named after Saint Anselm of Canterbury. As of 2024, the college's enrollment was 2,094 students. History ...
in 1977. He is married to the former Laurie Bell and has three daughters. He is the uncle to Nathan Sullivan who is father of Lucy Sullivan.


Career

Sullivan began his Secret Service career as a
special agent In the United States, a special agent is an official title used to refer to certain investigators or detectives of federal, military, tribal, or state agencies who primarily serve in criminal investigatory positions. Additionally, some special ...
assigned to the
Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
Field Office in 1983 after having served for five years as a special agent in the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In 1990, Sullivan began working at the Fraud Division in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
One year later, in 1991, Sullivan was assigned to the Presidential Protective Division. In 1996, he was made Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Office of Protective Operations. From 1997 to 1998 he was the resident agent in charge of the
Columbus, Ohio Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...
, office. After being special agent in charge of the Counterfeit Division from 1998 to 1999, he returned to the Presidential Protective Division in 1999. In July 2000, Sullivan was made a Deputy Assistant Director in the Office of Protective Operations. In 2002, he was reassigned to the position of Deputy Special Agent in Charge of the Vice Presidential Protective Division. A year later, he was reassigned to the position of Deputy Assistant Director, Office of Human Resources and Training. In 2006, Sullivan was appointed by
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
to the position of Director of the Secret Service. On February 1, 2013, Sullivan announced he was retiring after 30 years with the agency to be effective February 23. After his retirement, Sullivan partnered with Noah Kroloff, Dennis Burke,
David Aguilar David V. Aguilar is the former Deputy Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. In this position, he oversaw more than 43,000 Federal Agents and Officers. As the nation's highest ranking U.S. Border Patrol, Border Patrol Agent, Aguilar ...
, John Kaites and
Jerry Reinsdorf Jerry Michael Reinsdorf (born February 25, 1936) is an American sports executive and businessman who is the owner of the NBA's Chicago Bulls and MLB's Chicago White Sox. He started his professional life as a tax attorney with the Internal Re ...
to found Global Security and Innovative Strategies.


Scandal while director of the United States Secret Service

In April 2012, a scandal involving the President's security detail received international press attention. The scandal involved 11 agents and more military personnel from all four branches who allegedly engaged prostitutes while assigned to protect President
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
at the 6th Summit of the Americas in
Cartagena, Colombia Cartagena ( ), known since the colonial era as Cartagena de Indias (), is a city and one of the major ports on the northern coast of Colombia in the Caribbean Coast Region, along the Caribbean Sea. Cartagena's past role as a link in the route ...
. As of April 24, nine employees had resigned or retired. Starting June 30, 2011, agents on the Presidential Protection Detail were ordered to leave their posts and conduct surveillance on a neighbor of Lisa Chopey, Sullivan's assistant, in an operation named "Moonlighting". This continued for at least several days and according to some accounts, months. The neighbors eventually moved away, they said partly because of the intimidation.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sullivan, Mark J. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Law enforcement officials from Michigan Law enforcement officials from Washington, D.C. United States Secret Service agents United States Department of Homeland Security officials People from Arlington, Massachusetts Directors of the United States Secret Service Saint Anselm College alumni Arlington Catholic High School alumni