FBI Fires Agents Who Knelt at George Floyd Protest

The FBI has fired more than a dozen agents who were photographed kneeling during a racial justice protest in Washington following the 2020 killing of George Floyd, according to people familiar with the matter.

The dismissals come after the bureau had initially reassigned the agents last spring. The exact number of employees terminated remains unclear, but sources said it was roughly 20.

The FBI Agents Association confirmed the firings late Friday, saying the group included military veterans with statutory protections. The association condemned the move as unlawful, urged Congress to investigate, and accused FBI Director Kash Patel of ignoring employees’ constitutional and legal rights.

“As Director Patel has repeatedly stated, nobody is above the law,” the association said in a statement. “But rather than providing these agents with fair treatment and due process, Patel chose to again violate the law by ignoring these agents’ constitutional and legal rights instead of following the requisite process.”

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The photographs in question showed FBI employees taking a knee during demonstrations in Washington after Floyd’s death in Minneapolis in May 2020. While some viewed the gesture as an act of solidarity or a de-escalation tactic, others inside the bureau were angered by it.

An FBI spokesman declined to comment Friday on the firings.

The dismissals are part of a broader personnel shake-up under Patel. Earlier this month, at least five senior agents and executives were fired in a wave of ousters that officials say has lowered morale within the agency.

Among those removed were Steve Jensen, who oversaw investigations into the Jan. 6 Capitol riot; Brian Driscoll, who briefly served as acting FBI director; and Chris Meyer, who was wrongly rumored to be tied to the Mar-a-Lago classified documents investigation. Walter Giardina, who took part in high-profile probes including one into former Trump adviser Peter Navarro, was also let go.

Some of the fired officials, including Jensen and Driscoll, have filed a lawsuit claiming that Patel acknowledged it might be illegal to remove agents based on cases they worked but said he faced pressure from the White House and Justice Department. Patel has denied taking directives from the administration, telling Congress last week that terminations were based solely on performance and bureau standards.

The firings mark the latest development in Patel’s effort to reshape the FBI, a move that has sparked criticism, internal disputes, and legal battles.

The FBI’s wave of dismissals, tied to both past protest actions and politically sensitive investigations, is expected to draw congressional scrutiny in the coming weeks.