Base Commanding Officer

Daniel J. Lecce
Colonel, United States Marine Corps

Commissioned in 1986, Colonel Lecce has served in a variety of operational and legal billets. These include: trial counsel, defense counsel, and civil law attorney; Commanding Officer, Headquarters and Service Company, Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton; Assistant Professor of Military Law, United States Naval Academy; Director, Joint Legal Assistance Office, Camp Pendleton, California; Staff Judge Advocate, 15th and 31st Marine Expeditionary Units; and Deputy Staff Judge Advocate, United States Marine Corps Forces, Atlantic.

From July 2003 to July 2005, he served as the Commanding Officer, B Company (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates), Marine Security Guard Battalion. As Commanding Officer, Colonel Lecce was responsible for 19 Marine Security Guard Detachments tasked with the security of United States Embassies and Consulates located throughout the Middle East, Southwest Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. He established the first Marine Security Guard Detachment at the United States Embassy, Baghdad, Iraq and re-established the Marine Detachment at the United States Embassy, Kabul, Afghanistan.

Following his command tour, he served as the Branch Head, Operational and International Law, Office of the Staff Judge Advocate to the Commandant, Headquarters Marine Corps.

In 2006, Colonel Lecce was selected as the Marine Fellow to the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He graduated with a Master of International Public Policy (with Honors) in 2007.

He was assigned as the Staff Judge Advocate, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing in 2007 and was temporarily transferred to II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) in 2008, deploying in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from February 2009 to January 2010.

Colonel Lecce received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Pittsburgh in 1984 and his Juris Doctorate from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 1987. A 1997 graduate of the Judge Advocate General of the Army's School in Charlottesville, Virginia, he earned a Masters of Law degree with a concentration in Military Operational and International Law.

He served as a Law of Armed Conflict guest lecturer at the National Defense Academy, Vienna, Austria and completed courses of instruction focusing on the Law of Armed Conflict and Humanitarian Law at the International Institute of Humanitarian Law, San Remo, Italy. Colonel Lecce participated in Operations Stabilise (East Timor, 2000) and Southern Watch (Persian Gulf, 2000) and is designated as a Regional Area Officer (Middle East/North Africa).

His personal awards include the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal (3 awards), and the Navy-Marine Corps Commendation Medal (5 awards).