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Retired Deputy Assistant Director Charles L. Gittens, Office of Inspection, passed away on July 27, 2011. Mr. Gittens was the

first African American to serve as a special agent in the U.S. Secret Service, and was sworn in on February 1, 1956.

During his career, Mr. Gittens had risen through the ranks, having begun his Secret Service career assigned to the Charlotte Field Office. Addition-al assignments included the New York City Field Office and the San Juan Field Office. In 1971, Mr. Gittens was appointed Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Office. Six years later, he was promoted as the first African American Deputy Assistant Director, Office of Inspection, where he remained until his retirement in 1979.

During his career, Mr. Gittens was involved in numerous undercover investigations and was a member of “The Special Detail” which special-ized in curtailing counterfeiting activities in the United States and abroad. In addition, Mr. Gittens

protected Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson, Vice President Humphrey, Mrs. Kennedy, and President Johnson’s daughter Linda Bird.

Working towards expanding the employee di-versity of the Secret Service, Mr. Gittens was part of the agency’s first minority recruitment program in 1965, visiting predominantly African-American colleges and universities to talk about the Secret Service and its employment opportuni-ties. In March 1971, Mr. Gittens was selected as an Equal Employment Opportunity Counselor for all Secret Service employees, with emphasis on insuring equal employment opportunities for minority groups, women, older employees, and employees with disabilities.

Mr. Gittens was the first African American to serve as a special agent in the U.S. Secret Service, and was sworn in on February 1, 1956.

CHARLES L. GITTENSAugust 21, 1928 – July 27, 2011

In Memoriam

Former and current agents of the secret service attend a reunion event in 2006.Back Row (from L to R): Richard Artisan, Hubert Bell, Doug Pascal, Donald Tucker, Charles Gittens. Front Row (from L to R): Current DAD TEC Renee Triplett, Current SAIC CAF Lynda Williams, Robert Faison

Retired agents (from L to R) Donald Tucker, Doug Pascal, Robert Faison, Charles Gittens, and Richard Artison visit the James J. Rowley Training center in 2006.

“The passing of Deputy Assistant Director Gittens represents a sad day for the Secret Service family. Mr. Gittens’ legacy of accomplishments will live on with all those who knew him, as well as all of us who benefitted from the path he created and standards he set as the first African American agent in the Secret Service. His contributions to this agency and this coun-try cannot be overstated.” -Director Mark Sullivan, United States Secret Service

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Mr. Gittens was featured in an article in the November 1974 issue of Ebony. In regard to his Secret Service career, Mr. Gittens stated, “Looking back, when I enlisted in the Service, I knew ev-erybody. Knew every agent personally. It is a lot different now. We have steadily expanded, both in size itself or in the area of our responsibility. But the Service is a lot like home, even now. And I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”

Mr. Gittens was 82 years of age at the time of his passing. He originally hailed from Cambridge, Massachusetts. Prior to his 23-year Secret Ser-vice career, he served in the U.S. Army in Japan and Ft. Bragg, North Carolina. Mr. Gittens at-tended North Carolina College where he gradu-ated magna cum laude. He would later receive a degree in police work from the City University of New York.

Charles Gittens addresses a group during a Secret Service Black History Program.

From L to R: Charles Gittens, Casey Szpak, Carmine Motto, Paul Scanlon and Harris Martin are pictured in the New York Field Office following a successful counterfeit investigation, one of their many successful investigations in the1960s.