John L. DeWitt

John Lesesne DeWitt
DeWitt as a lieutenant general
Born	(1880-01-09)January 9, 1880 Fort Sidney, Nebraska
Died	June 20, 1962(1962-06-20) (aged 82) Washington, D.C.
Place of burial	Arlington National Cemetery
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1898–1947
Rank	General
Commands held	Quartermaster General of the U.S. Army; Commandant of the Army War College; Fourth U.S. Army, Commanding General; Western Defense Command, Commanding General; Commandant of the Army and Navy Staff College
Battles/wars	Spanish–American War Philippine–American War World War I World War II
Awards	Army Distinguished Service Medal (3) Navy Distinguished Service Medal

John Lesesne DeWitt (January 9, 1880 – June 20, 1962) was a three-star general in the United States Army, best known for overseeing the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese Empire on December 7, 1941, DeWitt believed that Japanese nationals and Japanese Americans in the West Coast of the United States were conspiring to sabotage the American war effort, and he recommended they be removed from coastal areas. President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, giving authority to restrict military sensitive locations. DeWitt used the authority granted to him to issue military proclamations to place most of the west coast off limits to Japanese Americans, incarcerating 110,000 Japanese men, women, and children in concentration camps, most of whom were American citizens.