FBI fires analysts linked to controversial 'Catholic ideology' memo
FILE-Federal Bureau of Investigation headquarters logo is seen in Washington D.C. on February 20, 2026, (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images)
FBI analysts connected to the creation of a 2023 memo warning of a possible threat from Catholic "violent extremists" were fired on June 5, The Associated Press reported, citing the analysts' lawyer.
The fired workers included four intelligence analysts and a supervisory analyst.
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Department of Justice probes into the memo contested the specific methods used to examine information, but they didn’t find wrongdoing by the analysts involved.
According to the AP, the firings of the FBI analysts are part of a broader personnel change under the federal agency’s director, Kash Patel.
Patel has fired dozens of FBI employees who either contributed to investigations of President Donald Trump or who were perceived as not in lock step with the Trump administration’s agenda.
FBI analysts fired related to ‘Catholic ideology’ memo
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The Richmond memo, which surfaced from a domestic terrorism probe, attempted to evaluate a possible connection between what it called "Radical Traditionalist Catholic" ideology and racially and ethnically motivated extremists.
According to the Associated Press, the document warned of the potential for violence and emphasized what the authors described as "new avenues for tripwire and source development." FBI leadership criticized those details once the document became public.
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A January 2023 intelligence product created by analysts in the FBI's Richmond, Virginia, field office arose as a political boiling point after it was issued, with Republicans in Congress referencing it as part of their broader argument that the FBI during the Biden administration was targeting conservatives.
Meanwhile, an internal FBI review in a 2023 letter to Congress and based on interviews with 26 people determined that the individuals involved in the creation, review, and approval of the document didn’t follow certain standards and the claims in the report lacked suitable evidence.
In 2024, a Department of Justice inspector general report outlined an earlier FBI assessment by stating that although there were differences from the specific methods used for examining information, the report concluded that there was no evidence of "malicious intent or an improper purpose," according to the Associated Press.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by The Associated Press, which references the 2023 memo. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.