San Diego’s legal and law-enforcement communities are mourning the death of Andrew R. Haden, a longtime federal prosecutor who twice served as acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California. Haden, 48, was found dead Wednesday inside the federal building at 880 Front Street in downtown San Diego, which houses the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
San Diego police said officers were initially called late Wednesday after receiving a report concerning a potentially missing man. Investigators later located Haden deceased inside an office at the federal building. Police said they responded out of an abundance of caution and that no foul play is suspected. The San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office will determine the official cause and manner of death.
Reports citing a person close to the situation have described the death as an apparent suicide, but that detail has not been officially confirmed by the San Diego Police Department or the Medical Examiner’s Office. Because the official cause and manner of death remain pending, it is important to distinguish that report from information confirmed by authorities.
Haden had spent much of his professional life in public service. He served as a U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecutor for 16 years after previously spending five years as a Navy officer. A San Diego native, he attended University City High School and later earned a degree from Stanford University and a law degree from the University of San Diego School of Law, where he also taught as an adjunct professor.
Over the course of his career, Haden advanced through the Southern District of California U.S. Attorney’s Office and eventually became First Assistant U.S. Attorney, serving as the office’s second-in-command. In August 2023, he was sworn in as acting U.S. Attorney after the resignation of U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman, assuming responsibility for one of the nation’s busiest federal districts.
Haden later returned to the acting U.S. Attorney role during another leadership transition in 2025. After current U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon took office, Haden moved into the appellate division, where he continued his work as a federal prosecutor until his death.
Colleagues across the legal system remembered Haden as a respected and approachable prosecutor whose professional relationships extended well beyond the courtroom. Defense attorney Jeremy Warren, who had opposed Haden in a lengthy federal gun-trafficking case, recalled that their courtroom battles did not prevent them from becoming friends afterward. That relationship was cited as an example of the professional respect Haden could maintain even in highly adversarial cases.
Chief Judge Cynthia Bashant of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California also expressed grief over Haden’s death, reflecting the impact his passing has had across the federal court system and the broader San Diego legal community.
U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon informed employees about Haden’s death Thursday morning during an all-hands meeting and in a follow-up communication. Gordon said the office would not release additional personal details out of respect for Haden’s family, while remembering him as a mentor and leader.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office also announced that it would close for two days to allow employees time to grieve and that grief counseling would be made available. The steps reflected the profound effect Haden’s death has had on colleagues who worked closely with him over many years.
Haden’s professional accomplishments had earned him recognition from the San Diego legal community. In 2024, he received the Peter J. Mazza Outstanding Federal Lawyer Award from the San Diego chapter of the Federal Bar Association, an honor recognizing his contribution to federal law and public service.
The award carried particular personal significance because Haden and his wife had previously helped support the family of another attorney following that attorney’s death from cancer, according to colleagues familiar with the circumstances. The recognition therefore reflected not only Haden’s professional work but also the support he extended to people within his legal community.
Haden was also a father of two school-aged children, adding another deeply personal dimension to the loss. While public statements have focused largely on his professional contributions and his service to the justice system, friends and colleagues have emphasized the warmth, humor, generosity, and integrity they associated with him.
U.S. Attorney Gordon described Haden as a person whose life was characterized by laughter, friendship, integrity, and an unwavering commitment to serving the community. The statement reflected the central role Haden had played in the office and the esteem in which he was held by those who worked alongside him.
His death has prompted tributes from prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges, colleagues, and others who encountered him throughout his career. For many, his legacy is defined not only by the cases he handled or the leadership positions he held, but also by the relationships he built throughout decades of public service.
As the investigation and medical-examiner process continue, the official circumstances of Haden’s death remain pending. For now, the San Diego legal community is focused on remembering a prosecutor, teacher, Navy veteran, mentor, colleague, husband, and father whose career was closely tied to public service.
The loss has left the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the wider San Diego legal community grieving. Colleagues have been given time and resources to process the tragedy while Haden’s family faces the much more personal loss of a husband and father.
For those who knew Andrew Haden, the tributes now being shared are a reflection of a career and life that reached far beyond his official titles. His service to the Southern District of California, his leadership during periods of transition, and the relationships he formed across the legal community have become central parts of the legacy he leaves behind.
