2026.10.16. The Fair Economy — Nine FBI employees who were fired for participating in the investigation into President Donald Trump's unlawful retention of classified documents have filed a lawsuit, calling their dismissal political retaliation and demanding reinstatement and back pay.
According to reports on the 15th by AP, The Independent and other outlets, the plaintiffs are nine FBI special agents, intelligence analysts and operations specialists, all of whom received termination notices in February. Their combined FBI service exceeds 100 years, and they are veterans who took part in major cases including the response to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, hostage rescue operations, and the investigation into the 2024 assassination attempt on Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The lawsuit states that they were assigned to the classified documents investigation not voluntarily but as part of counterintelligence and counterterrorism duties. It also raises the issue that the dismissal process provided no internal investigation, disciplinary procedures, prior notice, hearing, or appeal opportunity.
The termination notices cited "poor judgment and lack of impartiality in the performance of official duties that led to the political weaponization of government," but the plaintiffs countered that this was false. The complaint claimed the dismissals stemmed from the baseless assumption that they had failed to meet their superiors' expectation of personal loyalty to President Trump.
The "Plasmic Echo" case, which is central to the lawsuit, led to the FBI's 2022 search of Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. The investigation resulted in former President Trump being federally indicted in June 2023 on charges of illegally retaining classified materials after leaving office and attempting to conceal them.
The indictment stated that the documents included information on U.S. and foreign defense and weapons capabilities, nuclear programs, vulnerabilities to military attack, and retaliation plans against foreign attacks. Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges, but the case was dismissed after Judge Aileen Cannon, whom he had appointed, ruled that the appointment of Special Counsel Jack Smith was unlawful.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs said in a statement, "They were simply doing their jobs — this administration treats it as a crime, but to us it is heroic." The legal team argued that the dismissals were the result of a long-running retaliation campaign that accelerated after Trump returned to the White House in 2025.
The complaint noted that the dismissed employees were unable to properly hand over ongoing, critical counterintelligence and counterterrorism investigations, resulting in irreversible damage to national security. The plaintiffs are seeking reinstatement to the FBI, payment of back wages lost since their dismissal, and a court ruling declaring the dismissals unlawful.
Earlier this year, two former FBI special agents who had been involved in the investigation into the conspiracy to overturn Trump's 2020 election defeat also filed wrongful termination lawsuits, and the Justice Department has moved to have that case dismissed.
The latest lawsuit comes amid a broader purge led by FBI Director Kash Patel, under which FBI employees who took part in investigations related to President Trump have been dismissed one after another. Before becoming FBI director, Patel had publicly denounced FBI agents who participated in investigations of Trump as "corrupt government thugs."
At a House Intelligence Committee hearing in March, Director Patel testified that the dismissals were justified, claiming the employees had politically weaponized the FBI. But in the complaint, the plaintiffs countered that such claims were "false." They argued that the dismissals were meant to satisfy President Trump's personal desire for revenge, in violation of the First Amendment (freedom of expression) and the Fifth Amendment (due process).
They also disputed Director Patel's testimony at a September 15 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, in which he said there had been "just cause" and an "internal investigation" behind the dismissals. At the hearing, Democratic senators criticized Patel for purging internal opposition within the FBI out of loyalty to President Trump. Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey blasted him, saying, "Patel is an incompetent lackey, unfit to even be an FBI agent." Senator Mazie Hirono of Hawaii also said, "Patel's list of failures is long and growing." Patel fired back, saying, "You are the biggest joke here," in an exchange that grew heated. The hearing also brought up Patel's policy of lowering FBI hiring standards, which allowed applicants with histories of prostitution and bestiality to be hired.
It also emerged that a large-scale exodus of personnel has occurred under Director Patel's leadership at the FBI. As of September, more than 1,100 FBI special agents were counted as having resigned or been fired — about 18.1% of all special agents. Former FBI Director Christopher Wray revealed that Patel had fired agents opposed to Trump in order to keep his own position.
Director Patel has been embroiled in a series of controversies since taking office as FBI director. In April, The Atlantic reported on Patel's heavy drinking, erratic behavior and frequent absences in an article titled "The FBI Director Has Gone Missing," prompting Patel to file a $250 million defamation lawsuit over it. It was also revealed that during an official trip to Hawaii in August 2025, he enjoyed "VIP snorkeling" at the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor, drawing written inquiries from senators that he reportedly has not answered for three months. In September, an internal document was disclosed showing that Patel had instructed the FBI to respond to social media posts critical of him.
Director Patel also filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic, the media outlet that published an article criticizing him in April.
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