2401 Jefferson Davis Highway
Alexandria, Va. 22301
Michelle Leonhart, acting administrator
DEA Public Affairs (202) 307-7977
http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/index.htm
DEA, created by President Richard Nixon in July 1973, is the premier federal drug enforcement agency, although the FBI has taken on an increasing drug-related caseload in the last 20 years. The agency has more than 5,000 special agents and a budget of more than $2 billion. DEA’s primary focus is on disrupting major lines of drug supply and eliminating organized drug trafficking operations. It focuses on major dealers, not street sales operations, and a considerable portion of its effort is devoted to detecting drug money-laundering operations.
DEA operates in 63 nations outside the U.S. It has 22 major programs, including a national drug intelligence center in El Paso, Tex., and 227 field offices inside the U.S.
In addition to press releases, the agency’s website has links to sections that contain:
· Speeches and testimony from key DEA officials -- http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/speeches.html
The agency also publishes a variety of publications related to drug enforcement operations, including bulletins that recap many of the regional investigations that the agency has mounted.
The main DEA webpage also has links to the agency’s 21 U.S. field divisions, and each of those maintains its own collection of press releases and other media information.
