Melanie S. Stinnett

Melanie S. Stinnett was appointed as the Assistant Director for the Office of Professional Responsibility and Security Operations (OPRSO)/Chief Security Officer on May 24, 2010. She serves as principal advisor to the Director’s Office in planning, overseeing, and coordinating security and emergency preparedness, inspection, and internal affairs activities of the Bureau.  She also ensures compliance with laws, regulations, and published ATF policies and procedures which protect the financial, program, and management integrity of the Bureau.

 

As Assistant Director of the Office of Management and Chief Financial Officer from January 2006 to May 2010, Ms. Stinnett was responsible for planning and executing all ATF management support programs, including financial management, human resources, contracting and procurement, program measurement and improvement, administrative management, and facilities management. During her tenure in the Office of Management, Ms. Stinnett used her financial acumen and consensus building skills to deliver a clean audit to the Bureau.

 

In addition, Ms. Stinnett demonstrated her support for leadership development and succession planning by mentoring Department of Justice employees, one who successfully completed the Department’s Senior Executive Service candidate development program, and one who completed the Department’s Leadership Excellence and Achievement Program (LEAP), and also serves as a coach for a team of LEAP participants.

 

Ms. Stinnett began her career with ATF as a staff attorney in the Office of the District Counsel, Philadelphia, in 1983. From 1987 to1991, she served as Senior Attorney in Charge in the Philadelphia office before becoming the Assistant Chief Counsel, New York.

 

She came to Washington in 1998 as Senior Counsel for Field Operations. Two years later, she became the Acting Deputy Chief Counsel. In 2002, she became the Deputy Chief Counsel and a career member of the Senior Executive Service.

 

Ms. Stinnett, a native of Washington, Illinois, received a bachelor's degree in history, magna cum laude, from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in 1979 and was elected to the Phi Beta Kappa national honors organization. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the Washington College of Law at American University in 1982, and was admitted to the Virginia Bar the same year.

 

Additional testimony to Ms. Stinnett’s dedication and commitment to integrity is evident in her being included in a prestigious group of 14 Department of Justice Senior Executive Service members who earned 2009 Presidential Rank Award recognition for meritorious service and extraordinary accomplishments over an extended period of time.