Calvin L. Scovel III
Inspector General
U.S. Department of Transportation
Calvin L. Scovel III was sworn in on October 26, 2006 as the sixth Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) was established by law in 1978 to provide the Secretary and Congress with independent and objective reviews of the efficiency and effectiveness of DOT operations and programs and to detect and prevent fraud, waste, and abuse. OIG's staff works to support DOT's priorities of transportation safety and effective program delivery and performance.
Mr. Scovel joined DOT after 29 years of active service in the U.S. Marine Corps, from which he retired as a Brigadier General. His last military assignment was as a senior judge on the U.S. Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals. He previously served as Assistant Judge Advocate General of the Navy for Military Justice, the principal advisor to the Secretary of the Navy and the Judge Advocate General on all criminal justice policy matters. He also commanded a military police battalion that provided security and law enforcement for Marine Corps Base, Quantico, Virginia.
Mr. Scovel served as senior legal advisor for the 4th Marine Expeditionary Brigade, which included all Marine amphibious forces in Operation Desert Storm and later in a NATO exercise above the Arctic Circle in Norway. He had previously served as legal advisor for a Marine amphibious unit deployed to the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans, where it conducted exercises in Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, Kenya, and Australia.
A Marine judge advocate, Mr. Scovel served as prosecutor, defense counsel, or judge in 250 courts-martial that included charges of murder, rape, child sexual assault, and drug trafficking. As an adjunct faculty member for the Defense Institute of International Legal Studies, Mr. Scovel led instruction teams in the rule of law and civilian control of the military for senior civilian and military officials in Honduras, Mauritius, Albania, and Serbia. He was in the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. His military awards include the Legion of Merit (four awards) and Combat Action Ribbon.
Mr. Scovel is a recipient of the Secretary's Gold Medal for Outstanding Achievement for his leadership of OIG in supporting DOT's recovery effort after the collapse of the I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis in 2007.
Mr. Scovel received his bachelor's degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his juris doctor degree from Duke University School of Law. He also received a master's degree from the Naval War College.
Mr. Scovel is married and has two sons.