A long-serving Secret Service agent who was implicated in a March incident involving the driving of an agency vehicle after drinking is leaving the agency, a law enforcement source told CNN on Wednesday.
Marc Connolly, who acted as the second-ranking agent on President Barack Obama’s detail, will retire, the official said.
The news came a day ahead of the release of an inspector general’s report on the incident. In a statement, Secret Service Director Joe Clancy called the report’s findings “unacceptable.”
“I am disappointed and disturbed at the apparent lack of judgment described in this report,” Clancy said.
Connolly’s retirement was first reported in The Washington Post.
Two months ago, Clancy appeared before lawmakers to explain the March 4 incident, which involved a late-night disruption at a White House command post during an investigation of a possible bomb.
The Secret Service director said he didn’t learn about the March 4 incident until five days later from an anonymous email, a delay he described as unacceptable. He said he delivered a “good, stern talk” to his staff upon learning he was kept in the dark.
After learning more details contained in the inspector general’s report, due out Thursday, Clancy placed Connolly and another agent, George Ogilvie, on administrative leave.
“Behavior of the type described in the report is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Our mission is too important,” Clancy said in a statement Wednesday.
The Secret Service said the inspector general report concluded Clancy “acted appropriately upon receiving information about potential misconduct.”
The agency said the report determined there was no evidence that surveillance video of the incident had been intentionally destroyed — an allegation that emerged after it was revealed footage of the episode had been deleted. The agency said its standard practice is to delete footage after 72 hours.
