Mr. Heddell began his Government service in 1966 as an Army Chief
Warrant Officer, Helicopter Pilot, serving in both Korea and Taiwan
during the Vietnam-era conflict.
Following his military tours of duty, Mr. Heddell served for 29 years
in the U.S. Secret Service, where he held various law enforcement,
management, and leadership positions. He began his career with the
Secret Service as a Special Agent, progressing to Assistant Special
Agent-in-Charge in 1982. Between 1982 and 1985, he served as Assistant
Special Agent-in-Charge in the Office of Administration, where he managed
the day-to-day administrative operations of the Secret Service, nationwide.
Mr. Heddell then served for two years as Assistant to the Special
Agent-in-Charge in the Washington field office where he directed investigations
of threats made against the President, Vice President, and other high-ranking
government officials in Washington, D.C. Between 1987 and 1989, Mr.
Heddell served as Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge in the Philadelphia
field office, where he supervised complex criminal investigations relating
to counterfeiting and various types of financial fraud.
From 1989 to 1991, Mr. Heddell served as Deputy Assistant
Director, where he managed inspections of offices,
as well as internal investigations into allegations of
wrongdoing by employees, worldwide. He also served, in this capacity,
for two years
in the Office of Training, where he was the executive responsible
for the development and execution of training programs provided
to the Secret Service's 4,800 employees.
Mr. Heddell assumed an executive position in the Vice Presidential
Protective Division in 1993, as Deputy Special Agent-in-Charge. In
1995, he was promoted to Special Agent-in-Charge and served in that
position until 1998. During his tenure in this division, he directed
the physical protection of the Vice President and the security of the
Vice President's residence.
From 1998 until December 2000, Mr. Heddell served as
Assistant Director. In this executive position, he led the
Secret Service's Inspection and Internal Affairs programs, worldwide.
In addition to dozens of outstanding performance ratings and numerous
letters of commendation, Mr. Heddell was the recipient in 1997 of the
prestigious Meritorious Presidential Rank Award for outstanding government
service.
Mr. Heddell holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political
Science from the University of Missouri, a Master of Arts degree
in Legal Studies
from the University of Illinois [formerly Sangamon State
University], and was a Woodrow Wilson Public Service Fellow
while at the Secret Service. He is a member of
the International Association of Chiefs of Police and was the
creator of the Secret Service's mentoring program at two D.C. public
schools.