Robert Mueller

Robert Swan Mueller III (/ˈmʌlər/; August 7, 1944 – March 20, 2026) was an American lawyer and civil servant. He was the sixth Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation from 2001 to 2013. He is a Republican. He was appointed by President George W. Bush and his original ten-year term was given a two-year extension by President Barack Obama.

Robert Mueller
Official portrait, 2011
Special Counsel for the United States Department of Justice
In office May 17, 2017 – May 29, 2019
Appointed by	Rod Rosenstein
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Position abolished
6th Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
In office September 4, 2001 – September 4, 2013
President	George W. Bush Barack Obama
Deputy	Thomas J. Pickard Bruce J. Gebhardt John S. Pistole Timothy P. Murphy Sean M. Joyce
Preceded by	Thomas J. Pickard (acting)
Succeeded by	James Comey
United States Deputy Attorney General
Acting
In office January 20, 2001 – May 10, 2001
President	George W. Bush
Preceded by	Eric Holder
Succeeded by	Larry Thompson
United States Attorney for the Northern District of California
In office August 1998 – August 2001
President	Bill Clinton George W. Bush
Preceded by	Michael Yamaguchi
Succeeded by	Kevin V. Ryan
United States Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division
In office August 1990 – January 1993
President	George H. W. Bush
Preceded by	Edward Dennis
Succeeded by	Jo Ann Harris
United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts
Acting October 10, 1986 – April 6, 1987
President	Ronald Reagan
Preceded by	Bill Weld
Succeeded by	Frank L. McNamara Jr.
Personal details
Born	Robert Swan Mueller III (1944-08-07)August 7, 1944 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	March 20, 2026(2026-03-20) (aged 81) Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Ann Cabell Standish ​ ​ (m. 1966)​
Children	2
Education	Princeton University (BA) New York University (MA) University of Virginia (JD)
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Marine Corps
Years of service	1968–1971
Rank	Captain
Unit	H Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division
Commands	Platoon commander
Battles/wars	Vietnam War
Awards	Bronze Star Medal w/ Combat "V" Purple Heart Medal Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal (2) w/ Combat "V" Combat Action Ribbon Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross

Mueller is the longest-serving FBI director since J. Edgar Hoover. He was the head of the Special Counsel investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections.

In August 2025, it was announced that Mueller had Parkinson's disease. He died on March 20, 2026 in Charlottesville, Virginia at the age of 81.

Robert Mueller Media

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  Mueller as a Marine lieutenant

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  Mueller as Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division, 1992

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  Mueller with President George H. W. Bush and William Barr in 1991

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  Official portrait, c. 2001

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  Mueller with President George W. Bush and Attorney General John Ashcroft, August 6, 2002

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  Mueller presented a honorary FBI Special Agent credential to President Bush in 2008

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  Mueller at the White House in April 2013, discussing the Boston Marathon bombing, with (from left) President Obama, National Security Advisor Thomas E. Donilon, Attorney General Eric Holder, Director of CIA John O. Brennan, and Lisa Monaco, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism

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  Protect Mueller protest in Washington, D.C., 2018

Other websites

Media related to Robert Swan Mueller III at Wikimedia Commons

• Profile at the Federal Bureau of Investigation and staff
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Robert Mueller on IMDb
• Works by or about Robert Mueller in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Robert Mueller collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Robert Mueller Archived 2018-02-04 at the Wayback Machine