Ms. Sara Carlson currently serves as the acting Deputy General Counsel for Analysis, Technology, and Science in DIA’s Office of the General Counsel. Sara leads a team of attorneys and a paralegal who provide legal counsel and support to DIA’s Directorate of Analysis, Directorate of Science and Technology, and the Chief Information Officer.

Prior to joining DIA, Ms. Carlson served as a legal counsel to the National Counterterrorism Center, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, where she served as the primary legal advisor to the Directorate of Operations Support and the Directorate of Strategic Operational Planning. In addition, Sara served as the primary legal advisor to the Director and the Center on domestic terrorism, creating a training program to ensure the proper exercise of legal authorities in this space. Sara also served as an active duty Army Judge Advocate in various other roles in both deployed and garrison environments.

Ms. Carlson received her Bachelor of Science from the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, and commissioned as a Military Police Officer in the United States Army following graduation. She received her law degree from the Pennsylvania State University’s Dickinson School of Law at University Park. Sara also has a Master’s in Military Law from the Army Judge Advocate General’s School in Charlottesville, Virginia, and a Master’s in National Security Law, with distinction, from the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C.