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U.S. NEWS Wednesday 5 February 2025
FBI agents sue over Justice Dept. effort to ID employees involved

in Trump-related investigations

By ERIC TUCKER and ALAN- by the now pardoned and
NA DURKIN RICHER at-large Jan. 6 convicted
Associated Press felons,” the complaint said.
WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI The lawsuit notes that
agents who participated Trump on the campaign
in investigations related to trail “repeatedly stated
President Donald Trump that he would personify
have sued over Justice ‘the vengeance’ or ‘the
Department efforts to de- retribution,’ for those
velop a list of employees whom he called ‘political
involved in those inquiries hostages,’ for their actions
that they fear could be a during the Jan. 6 attack.”
precursor to mass firings. The agents contend “the
The class-action com- very act of compiling lists
plaint, filed Tuesday in fed- of persons who worked on
eral court in Washington, matters that upset Don-
seeks an immediate halt to ald Trump is retaliatory in
the Justice Development’s nature, intended to intimi-
plans to compile a list of in- date FBI agents and other
vestigators who participat- personnel and to discour-
ed in probes of the Jan. 6, age them from reporting
2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol any future malfeasance
as well as Trump’s hoard- The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) headquarters is seen in Washington, Dec. 7, 2024. and by Donald Trump and
ing of classified documents Associated Press his agents.”q
at his Mar-a-Lago estate in
Florida. tigated as president by
The suit marks an escala- agents examining poten-
tion in a high-stake dispute tial ties between his 2016
that burst into public view campaign and Russia, and
on Friday with revelations then after the leaving the
that the Justice Depart- White House, faced new
ment had demanded from criminal inquiries into his ef-
the FBI the names, offices forts to overturn the 2020
and titles of all employees election and his retention
involved in Jan. 6 investiga- of top-secret documents.
tions so that officials could His efforts to overturn elec-
evaluate whether any per- tion results and his retention
sonnel action was merited. of those documents both
Thousands of FBI employ- resulted in indictments that
ees were also asked over were dismissed after he
the weekend to fill out an won the presidency in No-
in-depth questionnaire vember.
about their participation in The agents who brought
those probes, a step they Tuesday’s lawsuit are not
worry could lead to termi- identified by name and
nation. are instead referred to as
The scrutiny of career anonymous “John and
agents is highly unusual Jane Does.” They say they
given that rank-and-file FBI were told on Sunday to ei-
agents do not select the ther fill out surveys about
cases they are assigned to their involvement in the
work on, do not historically Jan. 6 or Mar-a-Lago in-
switch positions or receive vestigation or that their
any sort of discipline be- supervisors would do it for
cause of their participa- them. The responses would
tion in matters seen as po- be “forwarded to upper
litically sensitive cases and management,” the lawsuit
especially because there’s says.
been no evidence any FBI “Plaintiffs assert that the
agents or lawyers who in- purpose for this list is to
vestigated or prosecuted identify agents to be ter-
the cases engaged in mis- minated or to suffer other
conduct. adverse employment ac-
But Trump, dating back to tion. Plaintiffs reasonably
his first term as president, fear that all or parts of this
has long been furious at list might be published by
the FBI and Justice Depart- allies of President Trump,
ment and sought to bend thus placing themselves
federal law enforcement and their families in imme-
to his will. He was inves- diate danger of retribution