Justice Department says it wont release the names of FBI agents who worked on Jan. 6 riot cases
The Justice Department has agreed to refrain from publicly identifying any FBI agents whose conduct is under review as President Donald Trump’s administration examines the investigations into the Jan.6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters, according to a court filing Friday.Attorneys for FBI employees filed two lawsuits Tuesday to halt the collection and potential dissemination of agents’ names.Many within the FBI feared the Justice Department would use a list of names to conduct mass firings.Trump appeared to raise that prospect at an appearance at the White House on Friday.Asked whether his administration would fire agents involved in the Jan.
6 investigations, he said he would “fire some of them because some of them were corrupt” and added that the process would be done quickly and “surgically.”There’s been no evidence any FBI agents or lawyers who investigated or prosecuted the cases did anything wrong.Attorneys for FBI agents who fear for their safety if their identities are released asked US District Judge Jia Cobb to issue an order temporarily barring the federal government from publicly identifying them.A hearing on that request started Thursday and was scheduled to resume Friday, but government lawyers asked the judge to cancel it and sign off on their agreement instead.In Friday’s court filing, the Justice Department said the government will not release the list of agents to the public, either “directly or indirectly,” before the judge rules on the merits of the lawsuits.Thousands of FBI employees who worked on Jan.6 cases were asked to complete in-depth questionnaires.
In response to the request, the FBI provided Justice Department officials with personnel details about several thousand employees.The bureau initially identified agents by employee number rather than by name.But Friday’s court filing says the FBI subsequently turned over a record that pairs the numbers with corresponding names.Attorne...