WASHINGTON — The FBI has dismissed agents who were seen kneeling during a racial justice march in Washington after the 2020 death of George Floyd caused by Minneapolis police, as stated by three individuals familiar with the situation on Friday.
The bureau originally reassigned these agents last spring but has since terminated them, according to sources who spoke anonymously to The Associated Press about internal personnel issues.
The number of FBI employees fired was not immediately clear, but two people said it was roughly 20.
The contentious photos depicted a group of agents kneeling during the demonstrations that followed Floyd’s death in May 2020, which incited widespread outrage after video footage of his arrest went viral. This led to a national discourse on policing practices and racial inequality.
Demonstrators walk along Pennsylvania Avenue as they protest the death of George Floyd, May 29, 2020, in Washington.
(AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
The firings of the agents who knelt come amid a broader personnel purge at the bureau under Director Kash Patel.
Five agents, including senior executives, were reportedly fired last month in a wave of dismissals that insiders attribute to lowering morale within the agency.
Among those dismissed was Steve Jensen, who was involved in the investigations of the January 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot. Brian Driscoll, another dismissed agent, acted as director during the early days of the Trump administration and opposed the Justice Department’s requests to disclose the names of agents investigating January 6. Additionally, Chris Meyer was mistakenly rumored on social media to have been part of the investigation into Trump’s handling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida.
A recently filed lawsuit by three of the terminated agents claims Patel believed the firings were “likely illegal” but was compelled to follow orders from the White House. Patel denies taking directives from the White House regarding dismissals, stating that anyone let go had not met the FBI’s standards.
An FBI spokesman declined to comment Friday.
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