FBI employees sue Justice Department to safeguard agents who investigated Capitol attack News
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FBI employees sue Justice Department to safeguard agents who investigated Capitol attack

Two groups of FBI employees sued (see here and here) the Department of Justice (DOJ) Tuesday to protect agents who were involved in the investigation of persons suspected of being involved in the attack on the US Capitol Building on January 6, 2021, and of the unlawful removal of classified documents by Donald Trump to his residence at Mar-a-Lago.

Both complaints were filed before the US District Court for the District of Columbia. The plaintiffs, who have chosen to remain anonymous, claim to have a reasonable apprehension that recent directions given by Trump to the DOJ will result in the wrongful termination of several thousand FBI agents for politically motivated reasons. To this apparent end, the plaintiffs were asked on February 2 to fill out a survey regarding their specific role in the Capitol attack and/or Mar-a-Lago investigations. Plaintiffs further fear that if this information is made public, it would invite public scrutiny and put them and their families at personal risk. The plaintiffs seek to represent approximately 6,000 agents who worked on these cases.

The plaintiffs contend that the chain of events with regards to the matter, including the termination of DOJ employees involved with prosecuting Trump and resignation of Special Counsel Jack Smith, who initiated the Mar-a-Lago case against Trump, are a result of politically motivated actions done in bad faith. The plaintiffs claim that their rights under the First and Fifth Amendments are being infringed, with the actions based on the plaintiffs’ perceived political affiliations, thus violating their substantive and procedural due process rights, and their right to privacy.

While one set of plaintiffs have prayed for immediate relief in the form of prohibiting the authorities from collecting or disseminating information on who was involved with the investigations, the other set has also asked for a trial by jury on the basis of the claims enumerated.

The lawsuits follow Trump’s grant of pardons to approximately 1,500 individuals who had been convicted for their involvement in the attack.

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