Fired FBI officials were not afforded due process rights, agent association argues

A nonprofit organization representing active and former FBI agents said that the apparent lack of due process for officials terminated earlier this month has led to widespread fear about political retribution across the agency. 

“Summary terminations and the erosion of these protections are creating instability and uncertainty within the bureau, increasing the risk of losing skilled public servants with significant experience, and — most concerning — jeopardizing public safety,” FBI Agents Association President Natalie Bara wrote in a Thursday letter to the leaders of the congressional judiciary committees. “Put simply, no special agent, regardless of rank or assignment, should be dismissed without receiving fair and transparent treatment, and basic due process.”

FBI Director Kash Patel fired five agents on Aug. 8, including former acting Director Brian Driscoll and Washington Field Office Assistant Director Steven Jensen. CBS News interviewed individuals close to the axed employees who argued the terminations were rooted in politics. 

Bara asserted that none of the fired agents had been accused of misconduct or, in contravention of FBI policy, were provided with an opportunity to defend themselves. Also, she wrote that at least two of the employees were preference-eligible combat veterans “whose additional due process rights to an accelerated review and hearing were also purposely violated.”  

She argued that Patel violated his promise during his confirmation hearing to “honor the internal review process of the FBI” in response to a question about due process protections for FBI agents. 

“The recent summary terminations of these highly experienced special agents…are wholly inconsistent with that commitment,” Bara wrote. “These terminations were completely lacking in both due process and dignity and have left special agents with no explanation for this deviation from law and policy other than political retribution.”

The FBI’s press office said that the agency has no comment on the matter. 

At the start of President Donald Trump’s second term, Emil Bove, who was acting deputy Attorney General, ordered the firing of the FBI’s existing senior leadership team, contending that the Justice Department could not trust those officials to “faithfully” implement the president’s agenda. 

In July, the Senate confirmed Bove to serve as a circuit court judge in a mostly party-line vote.