| John Porter | |
|---|---|
| Full Name | John Crispin Porter |
| Place of Birth | Newark, New Jersey |
| Relatives | Andrew Porter (father), Elaine Porter (mother), Diane Porter (wife), Alexandra Porter (daughter) |
| Affiliation | Central Intelligence Agency (Section 20) |
| Rank | Sergeant First Class, USA (Ret.) |
| Hair | Black |
| Eyes | Blue |
| Height | 6'2 ft. |
| Weight | 205 lbs. |
John Crispin Porter was born and raised in Newark, New Jersey. His father, Andrew Porter, was a general contractor and former U.S. Army combat engineer. His mother, Elaine Porter, was a legal secretary. A couple of months before graduating from high school, Porter's girlfriend, Diane, became pregnant. A few days after Porter graduated, he and Diane were married. To financially support his new wife and soon to be born daughter, Alexandra, Porter enlisted in the United States Army shortly after the wedding. He decided to become an infantryman. After completing basic combat training and then infantry advanced individual training at the U.S. Army Infantry School at Fort Benning, Porter stayed at Fort Benning and went on to the U.S. Army Airborne School. Upon completing airborne training and earning the Basic Parachutist Badge, he was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg as an airborne infantryman in the 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment.
Porter later attended the U.S. Army Assault School at Fort Campbell, earning the Air Assault Badge. He eventually rose to the position of a fire team leader. Soon after, Porter attended and passed the U.S. Army Ranger School. A little while after earning the Ranger Tab, he applied to join Special Forces. After passing the Special Forces Assessment and Selection Course, Porter went on to the Special Forces Qualification Course. Upon completing the entire training process, he joined the United States Army Special Forces as a special forces engineer sergeant in the 2nd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group at Fort Campbell. Porter later attended both the Military Free-Fall Parachutist Course and the Special Forces Combat Diver Qualification Course. After being promoted to Sergeant First Class, he attended the Special Forces Intelligence Sergeant Course and was then made a detachment assistant operations and intelligence sergeant.
Porter left the U.S. Army after fourteen years of service. He then moved to Washington, D.C. with his family and applied to join the Security Protective Service of the Central Intelligence Agency. Porter eventually went on to the Uniformed Police Training Program at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. After training, he was assigned as a security protective officer to the CIA Headquarters. Sometime later, a senior operations officer named Hugh Collinson was picked to serve as the director of a newly-established and highly unconventional anti-terrorist unit within the CIA. A former U.S. Army intelligence officer, Collinson had served alongside Porter during a Special Forces mission and believed that with his distinguished record as a Green Beret in both unconventional warfare operations and intelligence collection and processing, he would be perfect for the unit. In short order, Porter was offered a position in an elite tactical operations team called Section 20.
A black budget branch of the CIA's Special Activities Division, Section 20 is a rapid response group responsible for dealing with imminent terrorist threats where they originate. It operates as a rapidly deployable intelligence unit with the capability to covertly move from country to country anywhere in the world to neutralize terrorist activities in locations too politically-sensitive to intervene through conventional means. All of its work is unofficial and "off the books." That allows its operatives to disregard various laws and international treaties. The missions tasked to Section 20 are fully deniable covert and clandestine operations that would be completely disavowed by the U.S. government if ever made public.
With his wife's reluctant support, Porter accepted the offer and joined Section 20. In his capacity as a Section 20 operative, he engages in paramilitary espionage missions where maximum discretion is required. In the field, Porter is supported by a remote team. He is used in high-risk situations where more than one operative, even though highly secret, would arouse too much attention. Officially, Porter remains a CIA Security Protective Officer. In actuality, he is Section 20's lead field officer. A clear-thinking and reliable special operations veteran, Porter brings strategic clout to Section 20. As a premier counterterrorism operative of the Central Intelligence Agency, he has helped save the United States from devastating national security threats on numerous occasions.
Note
- A British version of this character appeared in series 1 of the UK television series Strike Back.