Former FBI agents fired for kneeling during racial justice protest sue for wrongful termination

A group of former FBI agents sued the bureau and the Justice Department on Monday alleging that they were illegally and wrongfully fired for kneeling during a racial justice protest in Washington, D.C., in the summer of 2020.

The bureau reassigned the former agents in May in what was viewed as demotions, but fired at least 15 of them in September. The protest was over the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis that sparked nationwide protests.

The lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleged that the Trump administration ordered their terminations, which was allegedly driven by FBI Director Kash Patel. Attorney General Pam Bondi is also a defendant.

The former agents claimed they had made a "tactical decision” in attempting to de-escalate a mob that was confronting them, by getting on their knees to kneel during the protest near the National Archives in Washington, D.C. However, Patel allegedly told the plaintiffs that they acted unprofessionally.

"You have demonstrated unprofessional conduct and a lack of impartiality in carrying out duties, leading to the political weaponization of government," the suit claimed Patel wrote in the termination letter to the agents, according to USA Today.

The plaintiffs also claimed that former FBI Director Christopher Wray and his deputy director David Bowdich reviewed the team's actions and understood the agents were attempting to de-escalate a volatile situation and would not be penalized.

The former agents are seeking reinstatement to their posts, along with a jury trial on additional relief and damages.

The former agents were not identified in the lawsuit, but it comes after President Donald Trump promised to weed out politicized personnel within the bureau.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.