John E. Childress
Acting United States Attorney // Southern District of Indiana
John E. Childress was appointed as the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana on January 19, 2025. Prior to this appointment, he served as both First Assistant United States Attorney and Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, as well as the Central District of Illinois.
In his current role, Mr. Childress leads an office of 76 Assistant U.S. Attorneys and support professionals, overseeing the litigation of federal criminal offenses and complex civil claims on behalf of the United States.
Throughout his career with the Department of Justice, Mr. Childress has been a member of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee and the Criminal Chief’s Working Group. He also served as Criminal Chief for the Central District of Illinois and as its representative on the Joint Terrorism Task Force.
Mr. Childress has also served in the U.S. Army, where he was deployed to support Operation Iraqi Freedom from June 2004 to July 2005. He was awarded the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, and Combat Action Badge for his service.
Mr. Childress earned his bachelor’s degree from Indiana University and his Juris Doctor from Duke University School of Law. He clerked for the Honorable Richard Mills, United States District Judge in the Central District of Illinois, from 1990 to 1992. From 2007 to 2013, Mr. Childress served as an Associate Circuit Judge in Sangamon County, Illinois.
Dates of Service: 2026 – Present
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