After the war, he resumed his law practice, becoming the U.S. at-
torney for the western district of New York, and became famous for
his energetic enforcement of prohibition. He also ran for public office
several times, all unsuccessfully, but he served in the Justice Depart-
ment’s Antitrust Division until the beginning of World War II.
At the start of the war, President Roosevelt sent Donovan to Europe
to collect information, and, in 1941, named him COI. This made Dono-
van the first overall chief of the United States intelligence community
(IC),which at the time was fragmented into army, navy, Federal Bu-
reau of Investigation (FBI), Department of State, and other interests.
The FBI retained its independence and control of intelligence in South
America, at the insistence of FBI director J. Edgar Hoover.
The COI organization became the OSS in 1942, and Donovan re-
turned to active duty in his former rank of colonel, being promoted to
major general by the end of the war. OSS responsibility included es-
pionageand sabotage operations in Europe and in parts in Asia, but
not in Latin America or the Philippines.
Roosevelt’s death weakened Donovan’s position, which depended
on his personal connection to the president. President Harry S. Tru-
man, who distrusted intelligence generally, dissolved the OSS at the
end of the war. For his service in the war, Donovan received the Dis-
tinguished Service Medal and reverted to his lifelong role as a lawyer
by becoming special assistant to the chief prosecutor at the Nurem-
berg Tribunal. At the conclusion of the Nuremberg trials, Donovan
returned to his Wall Street law firm.DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION (DEA).The Pre-
mier U.S. government antidrug law enforcement agency, the DEA
was established in 1973 as successor to the Bureau of Narcotics and
Dangerous Drugs (BNDD). BNDD’s operations were largely ineffec-
tive due to intense rivalry with several other bureaus in the Depart-
ment of Justice focusing on drug issues as well as with the U.S. Cus-
toms Service. The DEA’s mission now includes the enforcement of
controlled substances laws and regulations and investigating and
preparing criminal prosecutions of those who violate laws on con-
trolled substances at both national and international levels. The pur-
pose of the DEA, moreover, is to provide a focal point for coordinat-
ing federal drug enforcement efforts with those of the state and local
authorities, as well as with international police entities.60 • DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION05-398 (2) Dictionary.qxd 10/20/05 6:27 AM Page 60