Gene McLennen

Gene McLennen was the CEO of McLennen-Forster, a defense contractor.

Day 4

McLennen conspires to protect his company.

During Day 4, Gene McLennen was present at the McLennen-Forster building in downtown Los Angeles.

Already that day, McLennen-Forster had been linked to a train bombing, the kidnapping of Secretary of Defense James Heller and his daughter Audrey Raines, and the theft of a Dobson Override Device and its subsequent use in melting down the San Gabriel Island nuclear reactor.

Sarah Gavin discovered that Habib Marwan (under the alias "Harris Barnes"), the architect of the day's events, had full security access to McLennen-Forster's system. Jack Bauer, special assistant to Heller, and Paul Raines then travelled to the McLennen-Forster Corporate Headquarters to apprehend Marwan.

Two McLennen-Forster executives, Head of Internal Security Dave Conlon and Chief Technology Officer John Reiss, convinced Gene McLennen to let them cover up their business connections to "Harris Barnes", so that they could protect their reputations and the future of the company. The two activated an EMP and destroyed all the electronic records of the corporation, and then Conlon accompanied Specter and his team of mercenaries to kill Bauer and Raines.

Background information and notes

• Although not directly shown on-screen, Gene was likely arrested for his plot in the conspiracy and his corporation presumably dismantled.
• Gene seems to be the least corrupt of the McLennen-Forster executives; He initially planned to cooperate with Jack and Paul, and although Reiss convinced him to approve the initial coverup, he was opposed to Conlon's plan to activate the EMP, though his main concern seemed to be his company being crippled electronically and getting arrested rather than the lives the EMP would destroy.