Stuart Bowen

Stuart W. Bowen, Jr. (born 1958), is an American lawyer who serves as the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR), a position he has held since October 2004. He previously served as the Inspector General for the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA-IG), a position to which he was appointed in January 2004. Mr. Bowen's mission includes ensuring effective oversight of the $63 billion appropriated for Iraq's relief and reconstruction.

Background

Born in Washington, D.C., on March 24th, 1958, Mr. Bowen attended the Episcopal High School in Alexandria, Virginia, earned a B.A. from the University of the South/Sewanee, attended Vanderbilt University Law School, and received a J.D. from St. Mary's University School of Law in San Antonio, where he served on the Law Journal's Editorial Board. He spent four years on active duty as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Air Force, earning the rank of Captain and the Air Force Commendation Medal. From 1991 to 1992, Mr. Bowen was Briefing Attorney to Texas Supreme Court Justice Raul Gonzalez; and from 1992 to 1994, he was an Assistant Attorney General of Texas, with a litigation practice focused on the civil prosecution of state licensee regulatory violations and appellate work in state and federal court.

From 1994 to 2000, Mr. Bowen held a variety of positions on Texas Governor George W. Bush's staff, including Deputy General Counsel, Deputy General Counsel for Litigation, and Assistant General Counsel. He was part of President Bush's legal team handling the post-election legal disputes in Florida during November-December 2000; his work helped ensure that overseas military ballots were properly counted. Mr. Bowen subsequently served as Counsel to the Bush-Cheney transition team.

From 2001-2003, Mr. Bowen served President Bush as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Staff Secretary and Special Assistant to the President and Associate Counsel.^{[citation needed]} In 2003, he became a partner at the law firm of Patton Boggs LLP, working out of its Washington, D.C. office.

Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction

As Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, Mr. Bowen is tasked with auditing and investigating the use of taxpayer funds appropriated for the Iraq reconstruction effort. Since 2004, he has managed the production of over 350 audits and inspections, producing finanical benefits in excess of $1.5 billion; his investigations have yielded over 65 convictions, with recoveries in excess of $170 million via forfeiture orders, fines, and seizures.

Mr. Bowen has supervised the production of 31 quarterly reports to the Congress, travelled to Iraq 31 times, and testified before the Congress on 31 occasions. He managed the compilation of six lessons learned reports, including HARD LESSONS (Government Printing Office February 2009), a book-length report on the entire Iraq reconstruction enterprise, which provides 13 recommendations for improving the US approach to overseas stabilization and reconstruction operations. All of these reports are available at www.sigir.mil.

Mr. Bowen's work has earned a number of awards, including: The David Walker Excellence in Government Award for Performance and Accountability from the National Intergovernmental Audit Forum; Oustanding Inspector General's Report to Congress from the Council of Inspectors General for Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE);Outstanding Investigative Task Force Award (CIGIE); Outstanding Inspection Report Award (CIGIE); Outstanding Investigative Case Accomplishment Award (CIGIE); Outstanding Audit Team Award from the President’s Council on Integrity and Efficiency (PCIE); Outstanding Inspection Team Award (PCIE); Gaston Gianni Special Award for Outstanding Inspector General’s Office (PCIE); Newsmaker of the Year Award from the Engineering News-Record; St. Thomas More Award for Distinguished Public Service from The St. Mary’s University School of Law/San Antonio; and a Best and Brightest Award from Esquire Magazine. Because of the nature of its subject matter, Mr. Bowen's work has required extensive media engagement, including appearances by him on CSPAN, NPR, PBS, CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX, CNBC, and BBC, as well as numerous interviews with print, international, and local journalists. Mr. Bowen's writings have appeared in a variety of publications including The Fletcher Forum of World Affairs, National Defense University's Prism Quarterly, The Journal of International Peace Operations, and books produced by King's College London and The National Defense University.

The SIGIR mission in Baghdad has not been without tragedy. On March 24, 2008, a rocket impacted the Embassy grounds killing Paul Converse, a SIGIR auditor. Paul was posthumously awarded the Jefferson Star by the State Department, its highest honor. Five other SIGIR staff members have been wounded while serving in Iraq.

Personal

Mr. Bowen is married to Adriana Sanchez Bowen (a lawyer from Bogota, Colombia) and has five children: Marshall, who attends Texas A&M, Class of 2012; Gentry, who attends Westmont College, Class of 2015; Sophie and Mallory, who attend Regents School of Austin; and Nathalie, who was born in 2010. He is a direct descendant of Chief Justice John Marshall, and his father, a West Point graduate (Class of 1956), served as a fighter pilot in Vietnam during 1966, flying 100 missions over the North and earning the Distinguished Flying Cross and numerous Air Medals.

Mr. Bowen is licensed by the Texas State Bar, Board Certified in Administrative Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, and has been admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, a variety of lower Federal courts, and all Texas State courts.

External links

• http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/01/30/iraq.audit/
• http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/04/AR2005050402256_pf.html Audit of Iraq Spending Spurs Criminal Probe, Washington Post, May 5, 2005
• http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=anps9Ih6B6EE&refer=top_world_news U.S. Planned Poorly for Rebuilding Iraq, Inspector General Says, Bloomberg News, October 30, 2005
• http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/18/world/americas/18iht-fraud.html
• http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/29/AR2007012901817.html
• http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/31/AR2006083101162.html
• http://www.stripes.com/news/another-report-faults-iraq-blunders-1.86247
• http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/21/world/middleeast/21reconstruct.html?pagewanted=all
• http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/iraqi-security-forces-facing-serious-problems-us-oversight-official-reports/2011/01/30/ABzwy5Q_story.html
• http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/marine-gets-6-years-in-prison-for-iraq-fraud/2011/02/07/ABr4SwQ_story.html
• http://www.c-span.org/Events/House-Oversight-Cmte-Hearing-on-Troop-Withdrawal-from-Iraq/10737419967/