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Charles “Charlie” Walker joined the law firm of Bobbitt Pinckard & Fields in September 2009. Prior to joining the firm he was the owner and director of Point Investigative Consulting in Pt. Loma providing litigation and investigative support to corporate clients, law firms, and individuals. Charlie comes to the firm with a rich history of law enforcement and legal experience.
Charlie’s vast law enforcement background includes having served as the Assistant Federal Security Director for Law Enforcement for the Transportation Security Administration within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. He has served as Senior Criminal Litigation Analyst for the United States Department of Justice and as Executive Director for the City of San Diego Ethics Commission. These positions followed three decades of service and his retirement as Chief Division Counsel for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
As Assistant Federal Security Director for Law Enforcement, Charlie served as TSA’s liaison with the Joint Terrorism Task Force and other local and state law enforcement agencies to coordinate intelligence sharing and investigative efforts within the transportation network. Charlie exercised criminal statutory authority within TSA for all law enforcement issues arising within the transportation network which included the San Diego International Airport (SDIA) as well as other San Diego transportation modes. During his tenure there, he was responsible for developing policies and procedures to assist law enforcement officers in the course of their duties to fly armed aboard all domestic flights and he facilitated the armed transport of prisoners. Charlie worked closely with the United States Secret Service and the California Highway Patrol to coordinate the movement of armed protective details of federal and state law enforcement agencies.
While employed at the United States Attorney’s Office as their Senior Criminal Litigation Analyst, Charlie was assigned to the Terrorism Unit where he served as a liaison with local and federal law enforcement agencies to review strategies and techniques for investigating and prosecuting terrorism-related cases.
In December of 2001, Charlie was appointed by the City of San Diego Ethics Commission to serve as the Commission’s first Executive Director. As the Executive Director he developed and oversaw the adoption of the Commission’s Investigation and Enforcement Procedures, Operating Policies and Procedures, Audit Procedures for Campaign Finance Committees, and the City’s first Ethics Ordinance.
During his career as an FBI special agent Charlie specialized in complex multi-jurisdictional investigations of political corruption, organized crime, white collar crime, and international drug organizations. He built cases which led to successful prosecutions against politicians and organized crime members in New York, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Diego. As a case agent, Charlie became a recognized expert on the use of court-authorized electronic surveillance and was the first agent to apply for and successfully use the “Roving Wiretap.”
In 1994 Charlie was appointed Chief Division Counsel for the San Diego FBI office and supervised the legal staff and program which included the legal advisors, asset forfeiture, and Freedom of Information and Privacy Act (FOIA) analysts. As a condition of his appointment as Division Counsel, he was required to take and pass the California Bar Exam. Charlie provided legal training and counsel to FBI management across a broad spectrum of operational and administrative issues.
Following the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Charlie was assigned to the investigation which was known as OKBOMB and was sent to Kingman, Arizona to provide legal counsel and to utilize his expertise in electronic surveillance to assist in the investigation. Evidence derived from this investigation led to the indictment of Timothy McVeigh and his accomplices.
Following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Charlie took an active role in the investigation of the two hijackers who had resided in San Diego prior to the attacks. During the investigation, Charlie provided legal counsel to the FBI Counter Terrorism squads and to the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) and established liaison with the United States Attorney’s offices in San Diego and New York to locate and detain material witnesses. As information was developed Charlie prepared affidavits for material witness warrants for the associates of the hijackers and search warrants for their residences, offices, cars, computers, and mosque. During the course of Charlie’s federal law enforcement career he has personally briefed the United States Attorney General and the Director of the FBI on operational matters.
Charlie’s background has enabled him to hit the ground running in the vigorous representation of law enforcement and public safety officers. As the former legal advisor to the Special Agent in Charge of the San Diego FBI office, Charlie is well suited to anticipate the management perspective in personnel investigations and related issues.
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