“We took an oath to uphold the Constitution, followed the facts wherever they led and never compromised our integrity. Our removal from federal service—without due process and based on a false perception of political bias—is a profound injustice that raises serious concerns about political interference in federal law enforcement,” the agents said.
Three former FBI agents have filed a class-action lawsuit in which they claim to have been wrongfully terminated because they worked on criminal investigations related to Donald Trump.
According to The Guardian, the lead plaintiffs in the claim are Jamie Gorman, Blaire Toleman, and Michelle Ball. All three worked on a public corruption squad in the agency’s Washington, D.C., field office and were assigned to investigate Trump. They were fired last year.
The lawsuit, field in a D.C.-based federal court, seeks wider representation for all other FBI employees wrongfully terminated by the Trump administration. If approved as a class action, the lawsuit could cover all FBI employees terminated since the beginning of 2025 and any who, in the future, might be fired “on the basis of perceived political affiliation, without being afforded due process.”
Attorneys for the class estimate that at least 50 former agents could be eligible to join the lawsuit.
The defendants named in the lawsuit include FBI Director Kash Patel and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Court documents claim that Patel and Bondi have, in effect, “embarked on a public campaign to oust Plaintiffs from federal service because Defendants perceived them to be political opponents—as if fidelity to the law and the proper execution of assignments were somehow hostile partisan acts.”
“Defendants’ mission—in their own words—is retribution,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit says that, upon being re-elected, Trump expected federal workers to retaliate against the presidents’ enemies, including those still working in the government.
“President Trump made clear that upon his return to office, he expected top officials in federal law enforcement to carry out his retribution,” the lawsuit alleges.
In a joint statement, the three lead plaintiffs said they were only doing their jobs.
The Trump administration, for its part, has suggested that public workers involved in investigations against the president had contributed to the so-called “weaponization” of the justice system.
“This false and defamatory public smear impugned the professional reputation of Plaintiffs and the proposed class members, suggesting they were something other than faithful and apolitical law enforcement officials,” the lawsuit says.
In a joint statement, the three lead plaintiffs said they were only doing their jobs.
“Serving the American people as FBI agents was the highest honor of our lives,” the agents said in a joint statement.
“We took an oath to uphold the Constitution, followed the facts wherever they led and never compromised our integrity. Our removal from federal service—without due process and based on a false perception of political bias—is a profound injustice that raises serious concerns about political interference in federal law enforcement,” they said.
Sources
Ex-FBI agents who worked on Trump cases sue agency and DoJ over firings
FBI agents who investigated Trump file lawsuit alleging retaliatory firing
Former FBI agents who worked on Trump 2020 election probe sue Patel and Bondi over their firing
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