The RecordExhibit 152
Fired nine FBI employees who worked on the Trump classified documents investigation
Pending means: In court or under criminal investigation right now.
On Feb. 25 and 26, 2026, FBI Director Kash Patel fired nine agents, analysts and specialists who had worked on the investigation of Trump's retention of classified records, in letters that invoked 'Article II' and said each had shown poor judgment and contributed to the 'political weaponization of the government'. On Oct. 15, 2026, the nine sued, saying they were fired to satisfy Trump's grievances and got no notice, hearing or chance to appeal.
What happened
The plaintiffs are Jennifer Bacon, a counterintelligence section chief, Zach Feldman, Gilbert Granados, Catherine Herrera, Harrison Kaufman, Jeremy Linton, Erin Matanic, Danielle Ray and Rachel Vaccaro, special agents, staff operations specialists and intelligence analysts assigned to the investigation the bureau called 'Plasmic Echo'. Their 70-page complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia says that on Feb. 23 Special Agent Miles Starr, detailed to a unit called the Director's Advisory Team, asked for access to the case files, saying he was acting on Patel's instructions; Bacon granted it, the files carried all nine names, and she was fired less than 48 hours later, with the others following.
The suit says no internal investigation or disciplinary process came first, that ongoing counterintelligence and counterterrorism investigations were not properly reassigned, and that the firings were part of an effort by Patel and Attorney General Todd Blanche to remove anyone linked to investigations of Trump; a month after the firings Blanche, then deputy attorney general, said the administration had 'cleaned house' at the FBI.
The complaint also suggests the firings may have served to distract from reports that Patel was drinking at the Winter Olympics on Feb. 22. The plaintiffs claim violations of the First and Fifth Amendments and seek reinstatement and back pay; their lawyers are Abbe Lowell, Margaret Donovan and Rebecca Tinio. CBS News notes that the classified documents case led to Trump's 2023 indictment, which a federal judge dismissed on the ground that special counsel Jack Smith was unlawfully appointed, and that the department dropped its appeal after the 2024 election; on Feb. 25 Patel told Reuters that his own phone records and those of White House chief of staff Susie Wiles had been subpoenaed during Smith's investigations.
Where it stands
Pending: the lawsuit was filed Oct. 15, 2026, and no court has ruled. The FBI and the Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment from CBS News or Courthouse News. CBS News reports that a growing number of former FBI employees have sued over abrupt terminations.
The administration's side
The termination letters cited Article II of the Constitution, which sets out the president's executive power, and said each employee had 'exercised poor judgment and a lack of impartiality'. Blanche said in March that the administration had cleaned house and that no one still at the bureau had worked on the prosecution of Trump. Neither the FBI nor the department commented on the lawsuit.
Sources
Permanent link: https://unredactedrecord.com/e/fbifired/