FBI Chief Kash Patel Fires Trainee For Displaying Pride Flag At Workplace

FBI Director Kash Patel dismissed a bureau trainee on Wednesday, October 1, for previously displaying a Pride flag at his workstation, according to sources cited by CNN.

The employee, who had served in the FBI for years and received multiple awards during his tenure, was undergoing new agent training at Quantico, Virginia, when he received a dismissal letter signed by Patel, the report added.

While the letter did not mention the Pride flag specifically, sources told CNN that Patel accused the person of “poor judgment” and “an inappropriate display of political signage.”

According to sources cited by CNN, the trainee had previously worked as an FBI support specialist in Los Angeles, where he served as a field office diversity programme coordinator and displayed a Pride flag at his desk.

A copy of Patel's letter, dated October 1, obtained by MSNBC, stated, “After reviewing the facts and circumstances and considering your probationary status, I have determined that you exercised poor judgment with an inappropriate display of political signage in your work area during your previous assignment in the Los Angeles Field Office.”

The letter also invoked US President Donald Trump's Article II powers to remove federal agency personnel, a justification that has been cited in other recent dismissals at the Department of Justice and FBI. Several of those firings are now the subject of ongoing legal challenges.

Two FBI veterans told CNN that historically, displaying a Pride flag at one's desk has never been considered a violation of bureau policy. 

The firing came just days after Patel removed many FBI employees who had knelt during a 2020 protest while conducting crowd control in Washington, D.C. The actio,  at the time, was viewed by some as an attempt to defuse tensions with demonstrators, but it drew sharp criticism from conservative circles, including within the bureau. 

Then-FBI Director Christopher Wray had previously determined that kneeling did not breach bureau policies, CNN reported.

Since assuming leadership, Patel has fired or forced the resignation of many FBI officials, including three senior executives who later sued, alleging their terminations were politically motivated at the behest of Trump allies.

According to MSNBC, in the weeks before Donald Trump's inauguration in January 2025, FBI agents and Justice Department prosecutors warned each other to be cautious about showing any information that revealed their sexual orientation or support for LGBTQ rights.