Marcus Allen (not the NFL player), a former FBI analyst, was caught in the ongoing “purge” of American patriots from the FBI last January and, with the help of Judicial Watch, filed suit against the FBI last week. After serving the country as a Marine with two tours in Iraq, he joined the FBI seven years ago.
His record was unblemished until January, when he received this letter from the HR department of the FBI:
This letter is to inform you, as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Security Programs Manager, I [Jennifer Leigh Moore, Acting Executive Assistant Director] am suspending your Top Secret security clearance effective upon receipt of this letter.
The suspension of your security clearance is based on security concerns related to [an internal guideline]….
You will not be allowed access to FBI space.… You may not represent yourself as an FBI employee.
In February he received another letter indicating that he was being placed on administrative leave without pay. Under the terms of that letter, Allen, if he wanted to obtain other employment outside the agency, would first have to obtain approval from his former employer.
When he tried to earn some money selling a personally written prayer journal, the agency ignored his petition to do so. Apparently, starvation is part of the retaliation and punishment the FBI metes out to those who might hold views it doesn’t like.
In May, he was called in for an interview by the agency. Since then, nothing has changed: He and his family (wife and three children) have used up their savings and are now living off early withdrawals from his pension account.
Judicial Watch (JW), self-described as “a conservative, non-partisan educational foundation which … fulfills its educational mission through litigation,” filed a lawsuit against the FBI:
Plaintiff … brings this action … against Defendant Director of the FBI Christopher Wray for violating Plaintiff’s rights, pursuant to the First and Fifth Amendments to the United States Constitution….
By a letter dated February 17, 2022, the FBI placed Plaintiff on administrative leave without pay due to the suspension of his security clearance.
Plaintiff has never “espoused conspiratorial views” and does not support the “events of January 6th,” which on information and belief is a reference to the unlawful activities that occurred at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 (hereafter “January 6”).
The FBI has not identified any specific statements or actions supporting its contention that Plaintiff has done otherwise.
Prior to the January 10, 2022 letter, Plaintiff had never been disciplined in any manner during his years of service to the FBI….
Judicial Watch wrote that Allen had no connection with the January 6 incident:
Plaintiff was not involved in the events of January 6 and did not support them in any material way.
The FBI has made no allegation or offered any evidence to the contrary.
Plaintiff has expressed no view that could be reasonably interpreted as personally expressing support or sympathy for any unlawful activity that occurred on January 6.
In the months since Allen received the letter, the FBI has gone dark:
In the ten months since Plaintiff was placed on administrative leave without pay, the FBI has made no decision or taken any other action regarding the suspension of Plaintiff’s security clearance.
Because no decision has been made or any action taken on the security clearance suspension, Plaintiff has had no meaningful opportunity to challenge being placed on administrative leave without pay.
Nor has he had any opportunity to earn any income since he was placed on unpaid leave:
Despite being placed on unpaid administrative leave, Plaintiff is required to obtain the FBI’s approval for outside employment.
To this end, Plaintiff authored a prayer journal and sought permission from the FBI to sell the journal. After initially engaging with Plaintiff, the FBI has ignored his request for approval of outside employment, reaching no decision on whether he is permitted to sell copies of the prayer journal.
Judicial Watch spelled out what Allen wants the court to do:
- Declare that [the internal guideline] on its face … violates the First Amendment Free Speech Clause of the U.S. Constitution;
- Declare that [the guideline] violates the Due Process Clause of the U.S. Constitution;
- Permanently enjoin [the FBI or any of its agents] from enforcing [the guideline]; and
- Declare [that the FBI] is in violation of the law, and order the FBI to act promptly in regard to [Allen’s] security clearance and employment suspension by reinstating [his] security clearance and returning [him] to active duty with the FBI.
Judicial Watch failed to demand that the FBI respond to Allen’s demands within a certain time frame, especially important in light of the agency’s policy to starve Allen and his family as punishment and retaliation for any perceived failure on his part to embrace fully the FBI’s agenda concerning the January 6 incident.
It’s likely the “guideline” is being used not only against Allen, but against other FBI employees as a weapon to enforce submission of its employees to its agenda.
