Jim Davis, Executive Director

Date appointed: 1/6/11

Senate Committee hearing date: 1/26/11
Senate Committee hearing vote: Passed Committee hearing vote - Unanimously

Senate vote date: February 4, 2011

Senate vote: Confirmed - 34-0-1

Salary: $146,040

"Jim Davis has an exemplary record of service in the most important job of any public official: ensuring the safety of our citizens,” Gov. John Hickenlooper said. “Jim has made the sharing of information and intelligence among law enforcement agencies at all levels a priority, putting public safety above bureaucracy. He is one of the nation’s finest law enforcement officers, and we are thankful to have him watching over Colorado."

Davis is now the Special Agent in Charge of the Denver division of the FBI. His 25-year career in the FBI includes directing the investigation and prevention of an al-Qaeda terrorist plot led by Najibullah Zazi in 2009 and serving as the senior federal law enforcement official for the 2008 Democratic National Convention.

Davis was named to his current post in 2008. He is responsible for all investigative, intelligence and administrative operations for the FBI in Colorado and Wyoming. In his new role, Davis will oversee the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, the Colorado State Patrol, the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice, the Division of Fire Safety, the Office of Preparedness and Security and the Colorado School Safety Resource Center.

Before coming to Colorado, Davis served as the Legal Attaché in the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, where he was the senior FBI representative to the U.S. Ambassador and oversaw all non-terrorism FBI operations in the Iraqi theater.

Davis took two temporary duty assignments in the Middle East after being named assistant special agent in charge of the Indianapolis division in 2003. He was deputy on-scene commander of the FBI’s Baghdad Operations Center and served as the on-scene commander for the FBI in Afghanistan, where he led FBI operations in the hunt for al-Qaeda operatives.

Davis earned an accounting degree from Michigan State University. Before entering the FBI, he worked as a certified public accountant in Chicago. 

About the Department of Public Safety:

The Department’s role is to maintain, promote, and enhance public safety through law enforcement, criminal investigations, fire and crime prevention, recidivism reduction and victim advocacy. It also provides professional support for public safety workers and entities. It is headed by an executive director and comprises the Colorado State Patrol, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, the Division of Criminal Justice, the Division of Fire Safety, the Office of Preparedness and Security, the CDPS Human Resource Services, and the School Safety Resource Center, as well as several commissions.