Christopher A. Wray
Christopher Asher Wray (born December 17, 1966)[1] is an American lawyer. He is the 8th and current Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation since August 2, 2017. From 2003 to 2005, he served as Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Criminal Division under the George W. Bush administration. He was previously a litigation partner with the law firm King & Spalding.[2]
Christopher A. Wray | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 8th Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation | |
| Assumed office August 2, 2017 | |
| President | Donald Trump Joe Biden |
| Deputy | Andrew McCabe David Bowdich Paul Abbate |
| Preceded by | James Comey |
| Succeeded by | Kash Patel (nominee) |
| United States Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division | |
| In office 2003–2005 | |
| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Michael Chertoff |
| Succeeded by | Alice S. Fisher |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Christopher Asher Wray December 17, 1966 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) |
Helen Garrison Howell
(m. 1989) |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Yale University (BA, JD) |
In December 2024, Wray announced his resignation as FBI director.[3]
Early life
changeWray was born in New York City.[4] He was raised in Andover, Massachusetts. He studied at Yale University.
Early career
changeIn 2003, President George W. Bush nominated Wray as Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Criminal Division of the Justice Department.[5] Wray was unanimously confirmed by the Senate.[6] Wray was Assistant Attorney General from 2003 to 2005, working under Deputy Attorney General James Comey. While heading the Criminal Division, Wray oversaw prominent fraud investigations, including Enron.[7]
Director of the FBI (since 2017)
changeOn June 7, 2017, President Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate Wray to be Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.[8] On July 20, 2017, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted unanimously to confirm Wray to be the next director of the FBI.[9] Wray was officially confirmed by the Senate with bipartisan support on August 1, 2017; the vote was 92–5.[10][11] He was sworn in by Attorney General Jeff Sessions in a private ceremony on August 2.[12]
In the aftermath of the Douglas High School shooting in Parkland on February 14, 2018, it was found out that the FBI ignored a tip that shooter Nikolas Cruz had a desire to "kill people". Florida Governor Rick Scott called for Wray to resign, with the earliest tip received by the FBI dating back to September 2017 in which a YouTube user with the same name commented, "I'm going to be a professional school shooter." [13]
In December 2020, it was announced that President-elect Joe Biden would keep Wray as FBI director under his administration.[14]
In November 2024, NBC News reported that after Donald Trump was elected to another term, Wray was getting ready for the event Trump fires him.[15] On November 30, 2024, Trump named Kash Patel as his nominee to replace Wray as FBI director.[16]
On December 11, 2024, Wray announced that he would resign as Director of the FBI in January 2025, at the end of the Biden administration.[17][3]
Personal life
changeWray married Helen Garrison Howell in 1989. They have two children. He is registered as a Republican.[18]
References
change- ↑ "Confirmation Hearings on Federal Appointments" (PDF). Committee on the Judiciary. p. 849. Retrieved June 7, 2017.
- ↑ "Christopher A Wray". www.kslaw.com. King & Spalding. Archived from the original on June 7, 2017. Retrieved June 7, 2017.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Tucker, Eric (11 December 2024). "FBI Director Wray says he intends to resign at end of Biden's term in January". AP News. Archived from the original on 11 December 2024. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
- ↑ Gerstein, Josh (June 7, 2017). "5 things to know about Trump's FBI pick Christopher Wray". Politico.
- ↑ "Christopher A. Wray". United States Department of Justice. Retrieved June 7, 2017.
- ↑ "PN705 — Christopher A. Wray — Department of Justice". U.S. Congress. Retrieved June 7, 2017.
- ↑ Markham, Jerry W. (2015). A Financial History of Modern U.S. Corporate Scandals: From Enron to Reform: From Enron to Reform. Routledge. ISBN 9781317478157.
- ↑ @realDonaldTrump (June 7, 2017). "I will be nominating Christopher A. Wray, a man of impeccable credentials, to be the new Director of the FBI. Details to follow" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ↑ "Senate panel votes to confirm Christopher Wray as new FBI director". USA Today. July 20, 2017. Retrieved July 21, 2017.
- ↑ "Senate confirms Wray as next FBI director". Washington Post. Retrieved 2017-08-01.
- ↑ "Senate roll call vote PN 696". United States Senate. August 1, 2017. Retrieved 2017-08-01.
- ↑ "Statement by Attorney General Sessions on the Swearing in of FBI Director Chris Wray". www.justice.gov. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
- ↑ Shaw, Adam (16 February 2018). "Florida Gov. Rick Scott calls for FBI Director Christopher Wray to resign in wake of Parkland school shooting". Fox News.
- ↑ Walsh, Joe. "Report: Biden Will Keep Chris Wray As FBI Director — If Trump Doesn't Fire Him First". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-12-03.
- ↑ Dilanian, Ken; Hillyard, Vaughn; Ainsley, Julia; Gregorian, Dareh (November 11, 2024). "FBI Director Christopher Wray is preparing for a possible forced exit under Trump". NBC News. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
- ↑ Barrett, Devlin (November 30, 2024). "Trump Says He Will Replace F.B.I. Director With Kash Patel". The New York Times. Retrieved November 30, 2024.
- ↑ Perez, Evan; Holmes, Lybrand (11 December 2024). "FBI Director Chris Wray announces plans to resign". CNN. Archived from the original on 11 December 2024. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
- ↑ "Who is Christopher Wray? The Christie attorney named as Trump's FBI pick".