The Justice Department on Thursday released a report describing how the FBI connected traditional Catholic beliefs to domestic extremism and investigated two priests during the Biden administration.
The findings, issued by the DOJ’s Weaponization Working Group, focus on a 2023 internal FBI document from the bureau’s Richmond Field Office known as the “Richmond Domain Perspective.”
According to the DOJ, the assessment tied views common among many conservative Catholics to concerns about violent extremism. FBI materials pointed to the Traditional Latin Mass, opposition to abortion, conservative family values and a “rejection of modernity” as potential warning signs.
The DOJ said agents investigated two priests and tracked their travel and communications. The FBI ultimately determined there was no link between the priests and any criminal conduct or violent extremist activity.
The report also said the bureau relied on biased and unverified materials, including publications from the Southern Poverty Law Center and foreign intelligence sources, without adequately assessing their reliability.
Internal FBI reviews later concluded that the Richmond document improperly blurred the line between Catholic doctrine and violent extremism while failing to account for First Amendment protections, the DOJ said.
Even after those conclusions, the department said FBI leadership did little to correct the matter. Employees who helped produce the document received positive performance reviews, while officials in the Richmond office continued to defend and revise the assessment after it had been removed from FBI systems.
President Donald Trump ordered a review of the weaponization of federal agencies shortly after returning to office in January 2025. The DOJ said its report was based on a review of more than 1,800 pages of internal emails, assessments and investigative records.
The department has since removed key FBI employees responsible for the Richmond document.
“This Department of Justice will not tolerate a weaponized bureaucracy that chills First Amendment activity,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said. “The individuals who developed the Richmond Domain Perspective are no longer with the Department.”
FBI Director Kash Patel said the employees behind the Richmond Catholic memo have been held accountable and vowed to prevent similar abuses, “Weaponization will never be tolerated at this FBI. Even while those who developed the unacceptable Richmond Catholic memo under the previous administration have been held accountable, releasing information to the public about what occurred under the prior regime is an important part of the process. I want to thank the Weaponization Working Group for their partnership as well as Attorney General Todd Blanche for his leadership addressing these abuses and making sure they never happen again.”
