Amy Hess dreamed – as a child – of being an astronaut. A star student and athlete in high school, she studied aeronautical and astronautical engineering at Purdue – though poor eyesight dashed her NASA dreams. Instead, Amy got her start in the FBI as a special agent in Kansas City, working violent crime. She rose quickly through FBI ranks to run the Memphis and Louisville field offices, and to run two large FBI divisions at headquarters, where she oversaw FBI technology in one job and the FBI’s criminal and cyber work, in another. Those jobs made her the highest-ranking woman in FBI history. Today, Amy is back home as the Chief of Public Safety for Louisville, Kentucky – across the Ohio River from the small Indiana town in which she grew up.
Following the tragic March 13 shooting of Breonna Taylor in Louisville this year, and after we recorded this episode, Amy was named to lead police reform efforts in that city – to reduce use of force incidents, to review police policies and training, and to make recommendations on police disciplinary matters by establishing an Independent Civilian Review Board.
Amy shares with host Chuck Rosenberg fascinating stories of her work as an FBI special agent, including at the site of the horrific 1995 domestic terrorism attack at the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. If you have thoughtful feedback on this episode or others, please email us at theoathpodcast@gmail.com.
Robert S. Mueller III: The Director (Part 2)
Carla Hayden: Palace to Knowledge
Carrie Hessler-Radelet: Choose Optimism
Frank Figliuzzi: The FBI Way
Matt Olsen: The Line
Mike Bush: Kia Ora
Heather Penney: Lucky
Jon Jarvis: Absolutely American
Anne Milgram: A City Invincible
Robert S. Mueller III: The Director (Part 1)
Introducing: Season 4
Captain "Sully" Sullenberger: My Aircraft
Mike Leiter: Intelligence
Fiona Hill: Fortitude
Jim Miller: Hawkeye
Carol Lam: Her Honor
Kathy Sullivan: Spacewalker
Vivek Murthy: The Nation’s Doctor
Maya Wiley: Racial Justice
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