Webinar: Federal Protective Service: Judicial Safety and Security

**Program hosted in (ET) Time Zone**

The Federal Protective Service is responsible for safeguarding federal employees in the Executive Branch, including most of the several thousand administrative law judges and administrative judges employed by various federal agencies such as at the Executive Office of Immigration Review, the Social Security Administration and the Department of Labor. In this webinar, Federal Protective Services representatives will speak on Judicial Safety and Security.  While tailored to administrative law judges and administrative judges, they will provide practical information for all judges and will address materials in their “Your Safety, Our Priority” campaign (https://www.dhs.gov/publication/your-safety-our-priority), which addresses threats and online safety. Bring your questions to this timely and informative session.

**This event does not offer CLE Credit**

Registration is closed

Sponsored by the FBA Judiciary Division.

Presenters

David A. Hess, Deputy Director, Policy, Communications and Engagement
Federal Protective Service/Management Directorate

Mr. David A. Hess is Deputy Director, Policy, Communications and Engagement within the Federal Protective Service (FPS) – a position he has held since May 2018. In this role, Mr. Hess works closely with the FPS Director, FPS Principal Deputy Director, FPS Chief of Staff, and with program and support offices to further develop, implement, and oversee FPS’ policy, intergovernmental programs and communications activities. In his position, Mr. Hess plays a key role in developing and advancing FPS’ outreach and engagement efforts to external partners and stakeholders, including Congress.

Prior to his current role, Mr. Hess served as the Chief of Staff of the National Protection and Programs Directorate (NPPD) from November 2012 through April 2018. In this role, he worked closely with the NPPD’s Under Secretary and Deputy Under Secretaries to help manage the day-to-day operations of the Directorate to achieve its mission to protect and enhance the resilience of the nation’s physical and cyber infrastructure. During the 2017 Presidential transition, Mr. Hess was asked to serve as NPPD’s Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Under Secretary; he held this position from January 2017 to July 2017. Additionally, from January through September 2014, Mr. Hess served as NPPD’s Acting Deputy Under Secretary.

Before joining the NPPD front office, Mr. Hess served as the Director of Legislative Affairs for NPPD. Prior to that, he served as the Director of Legislative Affairs for the DHS’ Preparedness Directorate. In these roles, Mr. Hess was the principal congressional advisor to the Under Secretary and leadership of NPPD and the Preparedness Directorate, respectively. Mr. Hess also served as the Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Legislative Affairs (House) to assist the Assistant Secretary of Legislative Affairs manage DHS’ Office of Legislative Affairs. As Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary, Mr. Hess had primary oversight of the responsibility for the Department’s interaction with the U.S. House of Representatives.

Prior to joining DHS, Mr. Hess was a public affairs specialist in the Office of Congressional and Public Affairs, Office of Justice Programs (OJP), United States Department of Justice (DOJ). He served as a congressional, media, and public liaison for offices in OJP. Mr. Hess supported the Office for Domestic Preparedness (ODP), which was established within DOJ to develop and implement a National program to prepare for and respond to the incidents of terrorism involving weapons of mass destruction.

Arnold (AJ) Jackson, Assistant Director Field Operations, West
Federal Protective Service/Office of the Under Secretary/Management Directorate

Arnold (AJ) Jackson serves as the Assistant Director for Field Operations (ADFO) of the Federal Protective Service’s West Zone. AJ Leads and manages the daily enforcement of Regions 8, 9 and 10, which spans 14 states and 3 territories. Through 3 Regional Directors, he guides and manages all West Zone protective security programs and administrative and operational programs, including the physical infrastructure and protection of approximately 2,400 government-owned or leased properties. As the senior leader for all West Zone resources, AJ is also responsible for the health and welfare management for over 353 government personnel, and program oversight for 2782 Protective Security Officers.

AJ joined the Federal Protective Service in August 2000 and rose to the position of Regional Director, leading the operations of Region 8 from June 2009 to October 2014, prior to becoming the ADFO. One of eleven Regions, Region 8 is comprised of Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Montana, North and South Dakota. AJ has over 30 years of experience managing a variety of law enforcement, security, investigative programs, and was a member of the Air Forces Europe HQ Staff and Inspector General Team.

Prior to joining the Federal Protective Service, AJ served 22-years in the United States Air Force; he was assigned as the European Security Force Manager. In this capacity, AJ was the advisor to the Director Security Forces on all quality-of-life matters pertaining to the health, welfare, and security operations of over 5000 military and civilian personnel at Air Force installations in the European and Middle Eastern Theater.

AJ received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice Administration from University of Maryland and has undertaken numerous professional development training through Immigrations and Customs Fellows Program, the Council for Excellence in Government Fellows Program, Criminal Investigator Training program, and Federal Bureau Investigations National Academy.

Hon. Wanda Wright, Administrative Judiciary Committee Chair, Judiciary Division (Moderator)*

Judge Wanda Wright has been Administrative Judiciary Chair within the Judiciary Division of the Federal Bar Association since February 2025. Prior to assuming this role, Judge Wright served three years as a Regional Vice President and National Executive Board member of the Association of Administrative Law Judges (AALJ), representing judges in 17 offices in the southeastern United States. During her tenure, Judge Wright was honored to serve as AALJ Chair of the Health & Safety Committee where she developed the AALJ’s re-entry safety inspection protocols nationwide during the covid-19 pandemic, implemented enhanced security notification procedures, and collaborated on a health and safety video series. Judge Wright is the principal author of the proposed ALJ/AJ Privacy Bill. Prior to her appointment as an administrative law judge in 2010, Judge Wright was a disability advocate and assistant district attorney in New York. Judge Wright is admitted to the NY and NC bars and is a member the federal bar in North Carolina. She is a graduate of Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, and she received her law degree from the University of Virginia, where she was Articles Editor of the Virginia Tax Review.
* Disclaimer: The views expressed here are the author’s personal opinions and are not the views of the Social Security Administration or the federal government. 

Registration

Registration is closed for this event.

• FBA Member: $0
• Nonmember: $0

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If you have any questions regarding this program, please contact sections@fedbar.org