To uphold the law through the investigation of violations of
federal criminal law; to protect the U.S. from foreign intelligence
and terrorist activities; to provide leadership and law enforcement
assistance to federal, state, local, and international agencies; and
to perform these responsibilities in a manner that is responsive to
the needs of the public and is faithful to the constitution of the
U.S.: this is the mission of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The agency now known as the Federal Bureau of Investigation was founded
in 1908 when the Attorney General appointed an unnamed force of Special Agents
to be the investigative force of the Department of Justice (DOJ). Before that
time, the DOJ had to borrow Agents from the U.S. Secret Service to investigate
violations of federal criminal laws within it's jurisdiction. In 1909, the
Special Agent Force was renamed the Bureau of Investigation, and after a series
of name changes, it received it's present official name in 1935. During the
early period of the FBI's history, it's agents investigated violations of
mainly bankruptcy frauds, antitrust crime, and neutrality violation. During
World War One, the Bureau was given the responsibility of investigating
espionage, sabotage, sedition (resistance against lawful authority), and draft
violations. The passage of the National Motor Vehicle Theft Act in 1919 further
broadened the Bureau's jurisdiction.

After the passage of Prohibition in 1920, the gangster era began,
bringing about a whole new type of crime. Criminals engaged in kidnapping and
bank robbery, which were not federal crimes at that time. This changed in 1932
with the passage of a federal kidnapping statute. In 1934, many other federal
criminal statutes were passed, and Congress gave Special Agents the authority to
make arrests and to carry firearms.
The FBI's size and jurisdiction during the second World War increased
greatly and included intelligence matters in South America. With the end of
that war, and the arrival of the Atomic Age, the FBI began conducting background
security investigations for the White House and other government agencies, as
well as probes into internal security matters for the executive branch of the
government.
In the 1960's, civil rights and organized crime became major concerns of
the FBI, and counterterrorism, drugs, financial crime, and violent crimes in the
1970's. These are still the major concerns of the FBI, only now it is to a
greater extent..
With all of this responsibility, it is logical to say that the FBI is a
field-oriented organization. They have nine divisions and four offices at FBI
Headquarters in Washington, D.C. These divisions and offices provide direction
and support services to 56 field offices and approximately 10,100 Special Agents
and 13,700 other employees. Each FBI field office is overseen by a Special
Agent in Charge, except for those located in New York City and Washington, D.C.
Due to their large size, those offices are each managed by an Assistant Director
in Charge.
FBI field offices conduct their official business both directly from
their headquarters and through approximately 400 satellite offices, known as
resident agencies. The FBI also operates specialized field installations: two
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