Erroll Southers
Encyclopedia
Erroll G. Southers is an expert in transportation security and counterterrorism. He is currently the assistant chief of the Los Angeles World Airports
Police Department's Office of Homeland Security and Intelligence and the associate director of the University of Southern California
's Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events. He is a former special agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
and was a deputy director of homeland security for Governor
Arnold Schwarzenegger
of California
. In 2009 he was nominated by President
Barack Obama
to become the head of the Transportation Security Administration
but ultimately withdrew.
(1978), and his Master of Public Administration at USC
(1998), where his doctoral study focuses on "Social Network Analysis: Predictive Indicators of Homegrown Islamic Terror Cells". He is a Senior Fellow of the UCLA School of Public Affairs
.
Southers began his law enforcement career at the Santa Monica Police Department and served as a faculty member of the Rio Hondo Police Academy. During his four years in the FBI, Special Agent Southers was assigned to matters of counter-terrorism, foreign counterintelligence and was a member of the Bureau's SWAT Team. He was the Deputy Director for Critical Infrastructure Protection of the California Office of Homeland Security (2004–2006), appointed by Governor Schwarzenegger. He provided oversight of critical infrastructure protection policy, national pilot programs such as PCII (Protected Critical Infrastructure Information) and served as a member of the National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) Working Group, responsible for developing the NIPP.
In 2006 Southers was named the Associate Director of Special Programs for CREATE, where he developed the university's Executive Program in Counter-Terrorism and serves as an Adjunct Professor of Homeland Security and Public Policy in the USC School of Policy, Planning and Development. Recognized as one of the university's counter-terrorism experts, he lectures at the Joint Chiefs of Staff Level IV Antiterrorism Seminars and has testified before the full Congressional Committee on Homeland Security. In 2007 was appointed Chief of Intelligence and Counter-Terrorism for the Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) Police Department, the nation's largest aviation law enforcement agency.
Southers's interdisciplinary methodology has engaged CREATE and LAWA in pilot projects involving the testing of Peroxide-Based Explosives Detection Methodologies and ARMOR (Assistant Randomized Motoring Over Routes), designed to detect and deter terrorist pre-attack operations. His international experience includes counterterrorism study and lectures in Canada, Great Britain, Israel and China, where he was invited to assess the proposed terrorism countermeasures for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
recessed at the end of 2009 without having taken up the nomination. The delay was caused by a hold
placed on the nomination by Republican
Senator Jim DeMint
, who is opposed to any prospect that TSA employees might be able to join a labor union. In the wake of the attempted bombing of Northwest Airlines Flight 253
, DeMint's opposition was criticized by Marshall McClain, the president of the Los Angeles Airport Peace Officers Association: "Friday's terrorist attack on U.S. aviation makes it all the more imperative that there be no further delays in filling this crucial position." DeMint cited Southers' possible support of the unionization of the TSA (as forbidden in TSA's founding legislation) and inconsistencies in Southers' account of running background checks for personal reasons in the 1980s.
On December 30, 2009, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid
announced he would file for cloture
on the Southers nomination once the Senate returned from the December recess. Given the Democrats' supermajority in the Senate at the time of the nomination, it was expected that Southers would be confirmed sometime in January 2010.
On January 1, 2010, the Washington post published an article stating that Southers gave misleading testimony to Congress. The misleading testimony concerned allegations from 20 years previously about his questionable use of law enforcement databases regarding a former boyfriend of his wife.
On January 10, 2010, Southers announced his withdrawal from his nomination to lead the Transportation Security Administration. In a statement, Erroll Southers says he is withdrawing because his nomination has "become a lightning rod for those with a political agenda".
Los Angeles World Airports
Los Angeles World Airports or LAWA is the airport oversight and operations department for the city of Los Angeles, California, United States...
Police Department's Office of Homeland Security and Intelligence and the associate director of the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
's Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events. He is a former special agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
and was a deputy director of homeland security for Governor
Governor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
of California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. In 2009 he was nominated by President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
to become the head of the Transportation Security Administration
Transportation Security Administration
The Transportation Security Administration is an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that exercises authority over the safety and security of the traveling public in the United States....
but ultimately withdrew.
Career
Southers earned his Bachelor of Arts degree at Brown UniversityBrown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
(1978), and his Master of Public Administration at USC
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
(1998), where his doctoral study focuses on "Social Network Analysis: Predictive Indicators of Homegrown Islamic Terror Cells". He is a Senior Fellow of the UCLA School of Public Affairs
UCLA School of Public Affairs
The UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs is the public affairs/public service graduate school at UCLA. The school consists of three departments -- Public Policy, Social Welfare, and Urban Planning -- offering two undergraduate minors, three master's degrees, and two doctoral degrees...
.
Southers began his law enforcement career at the Santa Monica Police Department and served as a faculty member of the Rio Hondo Police Academy. During his four years in the FBI, Special Agent Southers was assigned to matters of counter-terrorism, foreign counterintelligence and was a member of the Bureau's SWAT Team. He was the Deputy Director for Critical Infrastructure Protection of the California Office of Homeland Security (2004–2006), appointed by Governor Schwarzenegger. He provided oversight of critical infrastructure protection policy, national pilot programs such as PCII (Protected Critical Infrastructure Information) and served as a member of the National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) Working Group, responsible for developing the NIPP.
In 2006 Southers was named the Associate Director of Special Programs for CREATE, where he developed the university's Executive Program in Counter-Terrorism and serves as an Adjunct Professor of Homeland Security and Public Policy in the USC School of Policy, Planning and Development. Recognized as one of the university's counter-terrorism experts, he lectures at the Joint Chiefs of Staff Level IV Antiterrorism Seminars and has testified before the full Congressional Committee on Homeland Security. In 2007 was appointed Chief of Intelligence and Counter-Terrorism for the Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) Police Department, the nation's largest aviation law enforcement agency.
Southers's interdisciplinary methodology has engaged CREATE and LAWA in pilot projects involving the testing of Peroxide-Based Explosives Detection Methodologies and ARMOR (Assistant Randomized Motoring Over Routes), designed to detect and deter terrorist pre-attack operations. His international experience includes counterterrorism study and lectures in Canada, Great Britain, Israel and China, where he was invited to assess the proposed terrorism countermeasures for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Nomination
Although Obama nominated Southers in September 2009, the SenateUnited States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
recessed at the end of 2009 without having taken up the nomination. The delay was caused by a hold
Secret hold
In the United States Senate, a hold is a parliamentary procedure permitted by the Standing Rules of the United States Senate which allows one or more Senators to prevent a motion from reaching a vote on the Senate floor....
placed on the nomination by Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
Senator Jim DeMint
Jim DeMint
James Warren "Jim" DeMint is the junior U.S. Senator from South Carolina, serving since 2005. He is a member of the Republican Party and a leader in the Tea Party movement. He previously served as the U.S. Representative for from 1999 to 2005.-Early life and education:DeMint was born in...
, who is opposed to any prospect that TSA employees might be able to join a labor union. In the wake of the attempted bombing of Northwest Airlines Flight 253
Northwest Airlines Flight 253
Northwest Airlines Flight 253 was an international passenger flight from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in Haarlemmermeer, Netherlands, to Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport in Romulus, Michigan, United States...
, DeMint's opposition was criticized by Marshall McClain, the president of the Los Angeles Airport Peace Officers Association: "Friday's terrorist attack on U.S. aviation makes it all the more imperative that there be no further delays in filling this crucial position." DeMint cited Southers' possible support of the unionization of the TSA (as forbidden in TSA's founding legislation) and inconsistencies in Southers' account of running background checks for personal reasons in the 1980s.
On December 30, 2009, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid
Harry Reid
Harry Mason Reid is the senior United States Senator from Nevada, serving since 1987. A member of the Democratic Party, he has been the Senate Majority Leader since January 2007, having previously served as Minority Leader and Minority and Majority Whip.Previously, Reid was a member of the U.S...
announced he would file for cloture
Cloture
In parliamentary procedure, cloture is a motion or process aimed at bringing debate to a quick end. It is also called closure or, informally, a guillotine. The cloture procedure originated in the French National Assembly, from which the name is taken. Clôture is French for "ending" or "conclusion"...
on the Southers nomination once the Senate returned from the December recess. Given the Democrats' supermajority in the Senate at the time of the nomination, it was expected that Southers would be confirmed sometime in January 2010.
On January 1, 2010, the Washington post published an article stating that Southers gave misleading testimony to Congress. The misleading testimony concerned allegations from 20 years previously about his questionable use of law enforcement databases regarding a former boyfriend of his wife.
On January 10, 2010, Southers announced his withdrawal from his nomination to lead the Transportation Security Administration. In a statement, Erroll Southers says he is withdrawing because his nomination has "become a lightning rod for those with a political agenda".
External links
- Profile at LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a business-related social networking site. Founded in December 2002 and launched in May 2003, it is mainly used for professional networking. , LinkedIn reports more than 120 million registered users in more than 200 countries and territories. The site is available in English, French,...
- Profile from USC SPPD (University of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of Southern CaliforniaThe University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
, School of Policy, Planning, and DevelopmentSchool of Policy, Planning, and DevelopmentThe USC Sol Price School of Public Policy , previously known as School of Policy, Planning, and Development , at the University of Southern California is a leading urban planning, public policy and public administration school in the United States...
) - Profile from the National Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE)