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Robert Bonner

  2. Robert Bonner

Hon. Robert C. Bonner

Commissioner

Attorney and former U.S. Attorney and DEA Administrator, appointed by Supervisor Antonovich.

Robert C. Bonner is a former United States District Judge and a former United States Attorney for the Central District of California. He served on the seven-member Citizens Commission on Jail Violence (CCJV) that examined the use of unnecessary and excessive force within the Los Angeles County Jail System, and he is the former Chair of the California Commission on Judicial Performance.  Aside from his public service, Bonner was a practicing lawyer in Los Angeles, engaged in both civil litigation and criminal defense.

Judge Bonner is currently engaged in Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and serves as both a neutral mediator and arbitrator of disputes. Judge Bonner is affiliated with Phillips ADR‘s distinguished panel of neutrals, is a member of the American Arbitration Association’s Master Mediation Panel, and is a member of FedArb, a panel of former federal judges who function as arbitrators and mediators. Judge Bonner is a retired former partner of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.   

Besides serving as a federal judge, Bonner’s government service includes heading several federal agencies, including his service as the Commissioner of U.S. Customs Service and, following the homeland security reorganization, as the first Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), an agency of the Department of Homeland Security. Earlier in his career, Bonner was the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).  

Judge Bonner is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.  He is also a member of Caltech’s Board of Trustees and Chair of its Audit and Compliance Committee. He has served on several committees of the Homeland Security Advisory Council, including the CBP Integrity Advisory Panel that evaluated use of force, transparency and other issues.  

Judge Bonner received his B.A. magna cum laude from the University of Maryland and his J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center.