Courtland D. Rae is a veteran American Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) official whose career has focused heavily on counterterrorism and national security investigations. He served as an Assistant Special Agent in Charge at the FBI’s Washington Field Office, where he worked under Special Agent in Charge Michael Burgwald in the field office’s counterterrorism leadership. Before reaching that position, Rae spent more than two decades working on terrorism investigations in several FBI assignments.
Rae is particularly associated with the FBI’s response to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. He was assigned to the FBI’s Boston Division and led the Boston Marathon Bombing Task Force, which investigated the attack and contributed to the prosecution of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. His work on the case was recognized as part of the team that received the U.S. Department of Justice’s 2016 David Margolis Award for Exceptional Service.
Courtland Rae became the subject of national attention in September 2026 after he and Michael Burgwald were removed from their counterterrorism leadership positions at the Washington Field Office and reassigned to FBI headquarters. Reports connected the personnel decision to disagreements over how the FBI should handle allegedly harassing telephone calls involving Katie Miller, the wife of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller. The FBI’s Washington leadership characterized the move as a personnel decision based on mission needs, while other reports said senior officials were dissatisfied with how the matter had been handled.
Courtland Rae Profile Summary
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Courtland D. Rae |
| Profession | FBI Special Agent and counterterrorism official |
| Nationality | American |
| Federal Agency | Federal Bureau of Investigation |
| Current/Most Recent Role | Assistant Special Agent in Charge, FBI Washington Field Office Counterterrorism |
| FBI Career Began | March 2005 |
| Major Area | Counterterrorism and national security |
| Notable Assignment | Boston Marathon Bombing Task Force |
| International Assignment | Assistant Legal Attaché, Ottawa/Toronto |
| Known For | Counterterrorism investigations, Boston Marathon bombing response |
| Religion | Not publicly established |
| Age | Not publicly disclosed |
| Height | Not publicly disclosed |
| No verified public account located | |
| Marital Status | Not publicly disclosed |
| Net Worth | Not publicly disclosed |
Courtland Rae Early Life
Public information about Courtland Rae’s childhood, parents and upbringing is extremely limited. Unlike many public figures, he has spent most of his professional life working in federal law enforcement positions where personal information is not routinely published. Available professional records therefore provide considerably more information about his government career than about his childhood or family background.
His professional identity began to become publicly documented through his FBI career rather than through media appearances or public political activity. A 2023 District of Columbia emergency-preparedness report identified him as Courtland D. Rae and described him as an Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Office’s Counterterrorism Branch I.
The limited public record also reflects the confidential nature of his work. Rae has generally appeared in government documents and professional events in his official capacity, including federal prosecutions and counterterrorism presentations, rather than discussing his private life. Consequently, details such as his parents, childhood interests and early personal experiences have not been reliably established in public sources.
Courtland Rae Education
Specific details about Courtland Rae’s undergraduate education, including the name of a university or degree program, have not been reliably established in the public FBI and government records reviewed for this biography. His professional profiles concentrate on his law-enforcement assignments and responsibilities rather than his academic history.
His career progression nevertheless indicates extensive professional training in counterterrorism and federal law enforcement. After joining the FBI, he worked in terrorism investigations in the New York Division and later moved into supervisory and program-management positions within the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division.
Rae also developed international counterterrorism experience during his assignment as an Assistant Legal Attaché in Ottawa/Toronto. His later work in the Counterterrorism Human Intelligence Section and Washington Field Office added further specialized experience in domestic and international terrorism operations.
Courtland Rae Career
Courtland Rae entered on duty as an FBI Special Agent in March 2005. He was initially assigned to the FBI’s New York Division, where he worked counterterrorism investigations from 2005 through 2010. In 2010, he was promoted to Supervisory Special Agent within the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division, International Terrorism Operations Section, where he program-managed international terrorism matters involving the Boston and New Haven divisions.
In 2012, Rae was selected for a supervisory position with an FBI counterterrorism squad in Boston. One of the most significant assignments of his career followed in the aftermath of the April 15, 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. According to a 2023 professional report, Rae led the Boston Marathon Bombing Task Force and was involved in the investigation that ultimately contributed to the successful prosecution of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
The Department of Justice separately identified Rae as a member of the team responsible for the investigation and prosecution of Tsarnaev. The team received the David Margolis Award for Exceptional Service in 2016, one of the Justice Department’s highest recognitions for exceptional employee performance. The department’s announcement specifically listed Supervisory Special Agent Courtland D. Rae among the FBI personnel recognized for the case.
Rae subsequently served as an Assistant Legal Attaché in Ottawa/Toronto beginning in 2016, supporting international terrorism and criminal programs. He later returned to the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division, where he served as an Assistant Section Chief in the Counterterrorism Human Intelligence Section. His responsibilities included leading online and physical human-intelligence efforts.
By 2023, Rae was serving as Assistant Special Agent in Charge of Counterterrorism Branch I at the FBI’s Washington Field Office. In that capacity, he was responsible for domestic and international terrorism operations. His public duties included speaking about the FBI’s role in major incidents, including the Boston Marathon bombing response.
During his time in Washington, Rae also appeared in Department of Justice announcements concerning terrorism and federal criminal cases. In June 2025, for example, the Eastern District of Virginia identified him as Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Counterterrorism Division when announcing an indictment involving alleged support for Hizballah.
In 2025, Rae also appeared in Washington-area federal sentencing announcements involving destruction of government property. These announcements identified him as an FBI official in the Washington Field Office Counterterrorism Division, demonstrating that his responsibilities extended beyond high-profile terrorism prosecutions to broader federal security and criminal matters.
His career also became associated with investigations connected to the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Recent reporting identifies Rae and Burgwald as having worked on investigations related to January 6, although publicly available government material provides considerably more detailed documentation of Rae’s Boston Marathon work than of his specific January 6 responsibilities.
Courtland Rae Trending in September 2026: FBI Reassignment After Dispute Over Katie Miller Harassment Calls
Courtland Rae began receiving widespread attention in September 2026 after he and Michael Burgwald were removed from their counterterrorism leadership positions at the FBI’s Washington Field Office and reassigned to FBI headquarters. The two were not reported to have been fired from the FBI itself. Rather, their Washington leadership assignments were ended.
The personnel change was linked in several reports to the handling of allegedly harassing telephone calls received by Katie Miller, the wife of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller. According to people familiar with the matter cited by CNN, investigators who reviewed the calls concluded that they did not meet the threshold for an FBI investigation and found no nexus to terrorism. Those reports said bureau leadership was dissatisfied with the handling of the matter.
The circumstances remain disputed. FBI Washington leadership, through Darren Cox, said the decision was made at the Washington Field Office level based on an ongoing assessment of mission needs and specifically denied that FBI Director Kash Patel ordered the reassignment. Bloomberg Law reported that sources familiar with the situation believed frustration within the Miller family and senior FBI leadership over the pace of the investigation contributed to the decision.
The White House offered a different characterization, saying senior FBI leadership believed Burgwald and Rae had been stifling investigations into what it described as serious threats. Details of the actual telephone calls and the investigative material reviewed by the FBI have not been publicly disclosed, leaving important aspects of the dispute unresolved.
Courtland Rae Personal Life
Courtland Rae has kept his personal life largely outside the public domain. There is no reliable public record establishing his spouse, children, parents or other close family members. His professional profile has instead centered almost entirely on his federal law-enforcement career.
This privacy is consistent with the nature of his work. Rae spent much of his career handling counterterrorism and national-security matters, including international terrorism investigations and human-intelligence operations. His public appearances have generally been connected to FBI responsibilities rather than personal interviews or entertainment and lifestyle coverage.
His relationship with Michael Burgwald in the Washington Field Office was primarily professional. Burgwald served as the Special Agent in Charge of counterterrorism matters while Rae served as his assistant. Their simultaneous reassignment in September 2026 brought renewed attention to both officials and to the internal disagreement surrounding the Katie Miller investigation.
Courtland Rae Age, Religion, Nationality, Height and Physical Appearance
Courtland Rae’s exact date of birth and age have not been reliably published in the government records and reputable reporting reviewed for this biography. His lengthy FBI career, which began in March 2005, indicates that he has been a senior federal law-enforcement professional for many years, but an exact age should not be inferred from his career history.
Rae’s religion has not been publicly established through reliable sources. He is American and has spent his professional life in U.S. federal law enforcement. His work has taken him through domestic and international assignments, including New York, Boston, Ottawa/Toronto and Washington.
His exact height and physical measurements are also not reliably documented. Public photographs and professional appearances show him in the conventional professional appearance associated with senior federal law-enforcement officials, but specific descriptions of his height, weight or other physical characteristics would be speculative without an authoritative source.
Courtland Rae Legacy
Courtland Rae’s professional record is most clearly associated with counterterrorism and major national-security investigations. His FBI career included work in New York, Boston, Ottawa/Toronto and Washington, as well as senior assignments within the Counterterrorism Division.
His role in the Boston Marathon bombing investigation represents one of the best-documented milestones of his career. He led the FBI’s Boston Marathon Bombing Task Force, and his work was recognized through the Justice Department’s 2016 David Margolis Award for Exceptional Service presented to the broader investigation and prosecution team.
The September 2026 reassignment added a controversial final chapter to his public profile. While reports broadly agree that Rae and Burgwald were removed from their Washington counterterrorism leadership posts and sent to FBI headquarters, the precise reasons for the decision remain disputed. The available record therefore supports describing the episode as an internal personnel controversy rather than assigning a definitive motive to the FBI’s decision.
Conclusion
Courtland Rae is a veteran FBI counterterrorism official whose career has included major assignments in New York, Boston, Ottawa/Toronto and Washington, with his best-documented achievements including leadership of the FBI’s Boston Marathon Bombing Task Force and participation in the investigation and prosecution team that received a 2016 Department of Justice award. His September 2026 reassignment alongside Michael Burgwald brought him into the national spotlight because of a dispute surrounding the FBI’s handling of allegedly harassing calls involving Katie Miller, although the bureau’s explanation and reports from sources familiar with the matter differ on the circumstances behind the personnel decision.
Frequently Asked Questions About Courtland Rae
Who is Courtland Rae?
Courtland Rae is a veteran FBI official who has worked extensively in counterterrorism and national-security investigations. He most recently served as an Assistant Special Agent in Charge at the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
What is Courtland Rae known for?
He is particularly known for leading the FBI’s Boston Marathon Bombing Task Force and for his subsequent senior counterterrorism assignments.
Did Courtland Rae work on the Boston Marathon bombing investigation?
Yes. Rae led the Boston Marathon Bombing Task Force after the 2013 attack and was part of the investigation and prosecution team recognized by the U.S. Department of Justice in 2016.
Did Courtland Rae work on the January 6 investigation?
Recent reporting says Rae was involved in FBI work related to the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack, although detailed public documentation of his specific responsibilities in that investigation is limited.
Why was Courtland Rae reassigned in September 2026?
Rae and Michael Burgwald were removed from their Washington Field Office counterterrorism leadership positions and reassigned to FBI headquarters amid a dispute over the handling of allegedly harassing calls involving Katie Miller. The FBI said the move was a personnel decision based on mission needs, while other reports attributed it to dissatisfaction with the handling of the investigation.
Was Courtland Rae fired from the FBI?
No. The available reporting describes his September 2026 move as a reassignment from his Washington leadership position to FBI headquarters rather than termination from the FBI.
How old is Courtland Rae?
His exact age and date of birth have not been reliably disclosed publicly.
Is Courtland Rae married?
His marital status and immediate family details have not been reliably disclosed publicly.