The FBI--100 Years of War and Peace

Date published: 7/13/2008

IN 1908, the U.S. attorney general organized a small group of investigators that would become the investigative arm of the Department of Justice. One of the first responsibilities of the agency, then called the Bureau of Investigation, was to investigative interstate prostitution. The BOI would go through a number of name changes, finally becoming the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1935. The current head of the original BOI, an up-and-coming Washington lawyer named J. Edgar Hoover, would become the director of the fledgling FBI.

Hoover died in office in 1972, having become what some believe was one of the most powerful persons in government, second only, perhaps, to the president. During his tenure, Hoover made the FBI into an international crime-fighting organization. At the time of his death, many outside and some inside the FBI believed he had stayed well beyond his time.

After his death, the term of future directors was limited to 10 years to prevent one person from gaining too much power, and to allow succession without the position becoming the political plaything of every new administration.

HIGH-PROFILE CASES

Director Hoover was quick to understand the media and the role it played in government. He ensured that his agents worked high-profile cases that drew both public and media attention, such as going against gangsters in the 1930s and against spies and enemy agents during World War II and the Cold War--including sending FBI agents overseas in both official (as legal attaches) and secret (Special Intelligence Service) positions to battle the Axis powers.

The long arm of the FBI would also ensure that just as criminals could no longer flee across state lines to escape arrest, they could also not commit a crime and flee to the safety of a foreign country. Hoover became an American icon, and newspapers, radio, movies, and eventually TV would carry the image of dark-suited, wing-tip-shoed FBI agents battling for truth, justice, and the American way. That's why many wanted to become FBI agents: They wanted to do something good and right--they wanted to stand for and be part of something greater than themselves.

Clint Van Zandt was an FBI agent for 25 years. He lives in Spotsylvania County.

Date published: 7/13/2008