Secret Service removes 4 senior officials in major management shake-up

(Image credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images)

published 14 January 2015

In its biggest personnel shakeup since ex-Director Julia Pierson's resignation in October, the Secret Service is removing four of its upper-level management officials, The Washington Post reports. The agency's acting director Joseph P. Clancy on Tuesday informed four assistant directors — those who oversee protective operations, the investigative mission, technology and mission support tools, and governmental and public affairs — that they must either resign, retire, or seek a new assignment with either the Secret Service or the Department of Homeland Security. A fifth senior staffer, the assistant director in charge of training, has also said in recent weeks that he will retire.

"Change is necessary to gain a fresh perspective on how we conduct business," Clancy told The Post. "I am certain any of our senior executives will be productive and valued assets either in other positions at the Secret Service or the [Department of Homeland Security]."

The Secret Service had come under fire after a string of security lapses last year, including two White House fence jumpers, and a scathing report from the Department of Homeland Security, its parent agency.