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PORTSMOUTH, Va. - Cmdr. Jonathan A. Carter relieved Cmdr. Todd D. Vance as commanding officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Legare during a change-of-command ceremony Tuesday at Coast Guard Base Portsmouth in Portsmouth, Virginia.
The ceremony was presided over by Vice Adm. William “Dean” Lee, commander, Coast Guard Atlantic Area, Defense Force East and director of DHS Joint Task Force East.
During Vance’s tenure as Legare’s commanding officer, he oversaw the successful completion of four counterdrug patrols, which resulted in the seizure of nine metric tons of cocaine and marijuana valued at more than $154 million, the interdiction of 30 suspected smugglers and the completion of more than 600 successful helicopter evolutions.
As commanding officer of Cutter Legare, Carter will oversee the cutter’s operations in maritime homeland security missions, which include drug and migrant interdiction, search and rescue, port and waterway security, and military operations.
The change-of-command ceremony is a historic Coast Guard and Naval tradition. The event, which has remained unchanged for centuries, includes a reading of the command orders in the presence of all unit crew members.