United States Department of Justice Names Acting DEA Chief

Tuesday, the Department of Justice announced that career Special Agent Robert W. Patterson has been selected to replace former Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) head Chuck Rosenberg as Acting Administrator. The permanent DEA head successor has not yet been nominated.

“The Department of Justice designated Robert W. Patterson as the Drug Enforcement Administration Acting Administrator in October 2017,” the DEA’s website stated. According to the DEA’s website, Patterson is the highest-ranking Special Agent on the DEA force. His career with the DEA began nearly 30 years ago in 1988. Patterson had previously served as the DEA’s principal deputy administrator since November 2016.

Former DEA head Chuck Rosenberg had served as DEA head for about two years. Rosenberg was appointed to lead the agency as Acting Administrator by former President Barack Obama in 2015. But differences with President Donald Trump’s rhetoric, Rosenberg said, caused him to resign from the agency on October 1. Rosenberg served under former FBI Director James Comey as chief of staff before leading the DEA.

The permanent DEA head pick has yet to be chosen. The new permanent DEA head will eventually be nominated by President Donald Trump.

Some of Patterson’s priorities will include tackling America’s opioid epidemic, which has been the DEA’s most recent focus. The future direction of federal enforcement on cannabis, however, is up in the air. Some has speculated that under Attorney General Jeff Sessions, the federal government will take a much harder stance against cannabis businesses. Other indications have signaled a more aggressive approach.

Former DEA Rosenberg wasn’t a friend of the cannabis industry, blocking over two dozen applications to research medical cannabis. The DEA head holds more power than other federal drug roles, such as the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, who controls anti-drug propaganda. Industry experts predict that the new DEA chief isn’t likely to change the DEA’s current policies.