FBI agents fired, including some shown kneeling during 2020 protests

Over a dozen FBI agents were fired Friday, including ones photographed kneeling during a racial justice protest in June 2020 following the police killing of George Floyd, according to the FBI Agents Association and news reports.

Some of the agents had been reassigned earlier this year, in what were widely seen as demotions, The Washington Post reported.

The agents were sent by President Trump and then-Attorney General Bill Barr to deter protesters from vandalizing federal property in Washington, D.C., in June 2020, according to the Post.

According to the DOJ watchdog’s 2024 review of Barr’s responses to the protests, FBI agents with the Washington Field Office expressed confusion over Barr’s requests and said they were not trained on or equipped for responding to civil unrest.

Some of the agents involved that day told CNN that they were confronted with protesters and decided to try kneeling to de-escalate, and the protesters moved on.

While the agents’ colleagues were divided over the move at the time, the Bureau, under then-Director Christopher Wray, conducted a review and did not find grounds for discipline, CNN reports. Many on the right sharply criticized the agents’ actions and the FBI’s response, including then-Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla. FBI Director Kash Patel opened another investigation on the case, CNN reported.

The FBI Agents Association, whose members include thousands of current and former FBI agents, decried the firings as violations of due process.

“Patel’s dangerous new pattern of actions are weakening the Bureau because they eliminate valuable expertise and damage trust between leadership and the workforce, and make it harder to recruit and retain skilled agents — ultimately putting our nation at greater risk.” the association said in a statement.

The FBI declined to comment on personnel matters. NPR was not able to independently confirm which agents were fired.

Three former senior FBI agents sued the Bureau, alleging improper termination.They alleged that the current FBI leadership was willing to violate the law to punish President Trump’s perceived enemies.