3 Ousted FBI Agents Who Worked on Jack Smith Investigation Sue for Old Jobs Back

Three ousted FBI agents from the Washington Field Office who worked on Special Prosecutor Jack Smith’s investigation into President Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election have filed a class action lawsuit against the FBI director, Kash Patel, claiming they were fired without due process and asking to be returned to their old jobs.The three agents — Blaire Toleman, Jamie Garman, and Michelle Ball — accuse Mr. Patel, the FBI, the Justice Department, and Attorney General Pam Bondi of timing their firings “to drive headlines and curry favor with political supporters” while failing to provide “any modicum of due process.”The lawsuit is among a growing number filed by former FBI employees who were fired by Mr. Patel for a variety of politically charged reasons, includng kneeling during a 2020 George Floyd protest, displaying an LGBTQ+ flag in a workspace, and enforcing COVID-19 vaccine mandates.Most notably, this lawsuit, which was filed in Federal District Court in Washington, is among the first to pursue class action status — which, if granted, could pave the way for a class of more than 50 FBI employees who have been fired “on the basis of perceived political affiliation” to get their old jobs back.All three agents were involved in Mr. Smith’s 2023 investigation into Mr. Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Mr. Smith abandoned that case after Mr. Trump’s presidential victory in 2024. Ms. Ball, who was working with Mr. Smith’s investigation as a member of the WFO’s public corruption squad, was fired on October 7, a date her attorneys say was selected to “coincide with Defendant Bondi’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee,” her lawyers write. Mr. Patel boasted of Ms. Ball’s firing in an interview with Fox News, saying his FBI was “cleaning up a diseased temple three decades in the making and removing those who weaponized law enforcement for political purposes.”That same night, during an appearance on Fox News host Sean Hannity’s show, Mr. Patel claimed the firings were a sign that “accountability is coming.”“You’re darn right I fired those agents,” he added.Ms. Ball’s attorneys claim that, contrary to Mr. Patel’s claims, she did not participate in political activities or maintain political ties during her time as a federal public corruption agent. She also “voluntarily abstained from voting in federal elections,” Ms. Ball’s attorneys write in their lawsuit.Ms. Toleman, who spent nearly 14 years with the FBI, worked as a supervisory special agent in the WFO’s public investigation squad. In November, Ms. Toleman, who was working in the FBI’s Chicago Field Office at the time, was among a handful of agents who were notably fired, reinstated, and subsequently dismissed again the following day by FBI leadership. Ms. Garman served as a supervisory special agent in the FBI’s Washington Field Office, where, as a member of a federal public corruption squad, she was “assigned to provide FBI support” in Special Prosecutor Jack Smith’s investigation into Mr. Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. A former FBI assistant special agent in charge, Michael Feinberg, writing in Lawfare last month, said Ms. Garman’s participation in Mr. Smith’s investigation made “sense” as she was one of the few special agents who had previously served as an assistant U.S. attorney. Ms. Garman served in the Southern District of Florida for five years before joining the FBI.Ms. Garman’s attorneys allege her firing coincided with the release of emails from Senator Charles E. Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, who identified both her and Ms. Ball by name. Speaking from the floor on February 3, 2025, Mr. Grassley referred to Ms. Ball and Ms. Garman as “subordinate agents” who were “hand-picked” to work on Mr. Smith’s investigation. She was fired from her job on October 31, 2025, “without notice of any charges against her and without giving her the opportunity to respond,” her lawyers write in their lawsuit. In his termination letters to all three special agents, Mr. Patel said the women “exercised poor judgment and a lack of impartiality in carrying out duties, leading to the political weaponization of the government.”In addition to being reinstated to their old jobs at the FBI, the agents are asking for a court ruling that affirms their due process rights were violated.

3 Ousted FBI Agents Who Worked on Jack Smith Investigation Sue for Old Jobs Back

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