FBI worker claims he was wrongfully terminated for flying Pride flag
David Maltinsky has filed a lawsuit alleging that he was fired for displaying a Pride flag at his desk. (X/CBS News)
David Maltinsky has filed a lawsuit alleging that he was fired for displaying a Pride flag at his desk. (X/CBS News)
A man who worked at the FBI has said he was wrongfully terminated for flying a Pride flag.
David Maltinsky, a 16-year veteran at the FBI, has said he is “disappointed” in the bureau after his termination. According to Maltinsky, who had served as an intelligence specialist with the bureau for 16 years, his wrongful termination on 1 October was “unconstitutional and politically motivated”.
‘There was fear after the administration came in’
In an interview with CBS News, he said of being fired: “I wasn’t surprised – I was definitely disappointed. But I knew, though not truly first hand, that I was on a list. There was fear after the administration came in that they were going to start looking at all of our personnel files, where some of us did self identify our sexual orientation and some of us did identify as trans. There was fear early on that DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) was going to collect this and they were going to curate a list and get rid of the ‘undesirables’.”
DOGE has now been disbanded, despite having eight months remaining of its contract. Office of personnel management director Scott Kupor confirmed DOGE’s end, saying it no longer existed as a “centralised entity”. Critics claimed it had delivered few of the promised savings.
David Maltinsky, a 16-year FBI employee, says he was fired for having a Pride flag near his desk just weeks before becoming an agent. He says the firing was unlawful & sent fear through LGBT employees
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) November 20, 2025
He has now filed a lawsuit seeking to get his job backpic.twitter.com/vrtn9Rno1h
Maltinsky, who was accepted into the FBI special agent training academy in Quantico, Virginia, earlier this year, has since filed a lawsuit that claims the FBI violated his first amendment rights and took retaliatory action against him for engaging in protected speech. Maltinsky is seeking a court order to restore his job.
According to the complaint, the Pride flag, which the bureau flew from its flagpole in front of its Los Angeles building in 2021, was given to Maltinsky in recognition of his efforts to support the FBI’s diversity initiatives.
His lawsuit alleges that after US president Donald Trump’s inauguration a co-worker reported a concern about the flag to his direct supervisor.
In a letter cited in his complaint, FBI director, Kash Patel wrote: “I have determined that you exercised poor judgment with an inappropriate display of political signage in your work area during your previous assignment at the Los Angeles Field Office. Pursuant to Article II of the United States Constitution and the laws of the United States, your employment with the Federal Bureau of Investigation is hereby terminated.”
Maltinsky’s lawyer Kerrie Riggs said, as per The Guardian: “This administration’s unlawfully firing him is part of a larger campaign to rid federal agencies of employees who may have different viewpoints, or are from marginalized groups, or who dare speak out against discrimination. David’s fight is not just about him, but about securing the rights and freedoms of all federal employees.”
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