Washington, DC - Patrick Yoes, National President of the Fraternal Order of Police, welcomed news that U.S. Attorney General William P. Barr, in consultation with President Donald J. Trump, has named Timothy J. Shea to be the Acting Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and issued the following statement:

“Tim Shea is exactly the right person to lead the Drug Enforcement Administration. He is a proven, committed law enforcement leader with exactly the right experience and skills to lead the DEA, a critically important Federal law enforcement agency, dedicated to protecting our citizens by fighting the scourge of drug abuse and addiction. The FOP has worked with Tim closely over the years, going back to the Administration of President George H.W. Bush. Prior to becoming the Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, he served as a Counselor to U.S. Attorney General William P. Barr. We had the pleasure of working closely with him on the development of the Presidential Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice. Like the President and his Attorney General, Mr. Shea understands how important it is to work in close cooperation with State and local law enforcement agencies to reduce crime. Cooperation with local and State law enforcement is critical to the DEA’s mission and we know for a fact that Tim excels in multilevel, cooperative approaches to crime fighting.

“Considering his work at the Justice Department, you will find very few people who have such demonstrated success in targeting Federal resources and partnering with State and local law enforcement to reduce crime at the national level. Tim proved himself to be not only a leader, but a true partner in these endeavors. Tim Shea is an outstanding choice for Administrator of the DEA.”

The Fraternal Order of Police is the largest law enforcement labor organization in the United States, with more than 351,000 members.