Todd P. Graves

Todd P. Graves, 37, is the United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri.

Graves was nominated by President George W. Bush to be the top federal law enforcement official for western Missouri on July 30, 2001. Graves took his oath of office on an interim appointment as U.S. Attorney by the U.S. District Court on September 17, 2001, and his presidential appointment was formally confirmed by the United States Senate on October 11, 2001.

Graves came to the U.S. Attorney's Office from his position as Platte County Prosecuting Attorney, an office to which he was elected in 1994 and 1998. At the time of his election to that post in 1994, he was the youngest full-time prosecuting attorney in Missouri. In that position, he managed six assistant prosecutors and a yearly caseload of approximately 400 felonies, 2,500 misdemeanors and 14,000 traffic offenses.

Prior to his service as Platte County Prosecuting Attorney, from 1992 to 1994, Graves was in private practice with the law firm of Bryan Cave. In 1991, he was employed as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Missouri, and served that year as a staff assistant on the Governor's Commission on Crime.

In 1988, Graves received an undergraduate degree in agricultural economics, with a minor in political science, from the University of Missouri-Columbia, graduating Summa Cum Laude. He received his law degree and a master's degree in public administration from the University of Virginia in 1991.

Raised on a family farm near Tarkio, Mo., Graves has been married 12 years to his wife, Tracy. The couple have four children, and reside on a 270-acre farm north of Kansas City that has been in the family since 1867.

As U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, Graves oversees a staff of 119, including 59 attorneys and 60 non-attorney support personnel. The district is headquartered in Kansas City, with staffed branch offices in Springfield and Jefferson City. The district is comprised of 66 of Missouri's 114 counties, and encompasses the metropolitan areas of St. Joseph, Columbia, Jefferson City, Springfield, Joplin and Kansas City, Mo.

The nation's 93 United States Attorneys are responsible for the prosecution of federal crimes such as firearms, narcotics, public corruption, money laundering, child pornography and fraud; the defense of civil cases brought against the United States; and the collection of debts owed to the United States and restitution owed by criminals to their victims.

Paul J. Vido

Paul J. Vido is Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Kansas City Field Division, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

Special Agent Vido began his career in law enforcement in 1979, as a member of the Lake County, Indiana Sheriff's Department. He served as a County Police Officer for 8 years, during which time he worked in the County's Traffic Division, Undercover Narcotics Division and the Detective Bureau, where he worked in the Violent Crimes Section. He worked in this capacity until 1987, when he joined the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms as a Special Agent.

Special Agent Vido's first assignment with ATF was in Springfield, Illinois from 1987 until 1995, where he worked firearms, arson and explosives investigations. During this assignment, Special Agent Vido received the Secretary of Treasury's Award for Outstanding Superior Performance. In 1995, Mr. Vido was promoted to a Group Supervisor in the Chicago, Illinois Field Division, overseeing ATF's enforcement mission in Oakbrook, Illinois. In 1998, Special Agent Vido was drafted to ATF Headquarters as the Public Safety Branch Chief in the Bureau's Arson and Explosives Division. This Branch was responsible for the Bureau's 250 Special Agent Certified Explosives Specialists and the 100 Special Agent Certified Fire Investigators. In 1999, he became the Arson and Explosives Division Chief.

In 2000, Special Agent Vido was promoted to the Assistant Special Agent in Charge position within the Kansas City Field Division, overseeing ATF's criminal enforcement efforts in the State's of Missouri, Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska.

Mr. Vido attended the St. Josephs University in Indiana from 1976 until 1980, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal justice and Psychology. Mr. Vido subsequently continued his graduate studies at Governor State University, Governor's Park, Illinois,

Mr. Vido is a native of Indiana, married and currently resides in Lenexa, Kansas.

Roger D. Stottlemyre

Roger D. Stottlemyre was appointed by Governor Bob Holden as the 19th superintendent in the 71-year history of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. Colonel Stottlemyre assumed his duties as the chief executive of the two thousand employee organization on June 1, 2001. Colonel Stottlemyre's selection to lead the Patrol is the culmination of his twenty-seven year
career with the Patrol.

Colonel Stottlemyre is the son of Robert and Donna Stottlemyre of Unionville, Missouri. He graduated from Unionville High School and attended the University of Missouri before joining the Marine Corps in 1968. Colonel Stottlemyre earned the Purple Heart during his service in Vietnam in 1969. While serving as an infantryman in Vietnam, Colonel Stottlemyre stepped on a Vietnamese booby trap and was struck by shrapnel in both hands and arms, his right leg and back. He recovered from his injuries and completed his enlistment on active duty.

During his recovery from his war wounds, Colonel Stottlemyre married Connie McDonald from his hometown of Unionville, Missouri. They have three children, Tanya, Todd, and Troy, who have blessed them with four grandchildren.

Colonel Stottlemyre began his career with the Missouri State Highway Patrol in 1974 as a member of the 43rd Recruit Class. Upon completion of his recruit training, he was stationed in Troop H, St. Joseph where he served in Tarkio and Chillicothe, achieving the rank of corporal in 1986 and sergeant in 1988. Colonel Stottlemyre was promoted to lieutenant and transferred to Troop C, St. Louis in 1992. He was promoted to Captain and designated the commanding officer of Troop D, Springfield in 1995. Colonel Stottlemyre was promoted to Major in 1998. He commanded the Administrative Services Bureau, then the Field Operations Bureau until his appointment as superintendent in 2001.

Colonel Stottlemyre was selected to attend the 2000 Leadership Missouri Program and was elected president by the other attendees of the program. Colonel Stottlemyre is currently attending the National Executive Institute, a world-renowned forum for senior law enforcement officials on critical issues facing law enforcement in the United States and other nations.

As with many other state police agencies, the Missouri State Highway Patrol has faced difficult economic times during the recent downturn in the national economy. Colonel Stottlemyre has faced many tough choices during his administration related to budgetary prioritization. Many of the important programs offered by the Missouri State Highway Patrol, such as the nationally recognized DARE Program, have faced significant cuts but are still operating and achieving their goal of impacting young citizens in a positive way. There is no way to anticipate all the challenges of the future. The 1,047 officers and 1,036 civilian employees of the Missouri State Highway Patrol are confident Colonel Roger D. Stottlemyre has the vision of the future, discipline to avoid distraction, and the personal conviction to guide the agency through any challenge.