FBI Employee Files Lawsuit Alleging Firing Over Pride Flag Display

November 21, 2025 Dan Tracer

The suit argues the FBI violated constitutional protections by treating a Pride flag as political expression warranting removal.

David Maltinsky arrived at the FBI Academy in Quantico last summer believing he was finally on the cusp of his dream. After sixteen years inside the bureau, he was entering the home stretch of training that would elevate him from a respected civilian specialist to a Special Agent. Instead, he left three weeks before graduation with a termination letter signed by FBI Director Kash Patel.

The dismissal, Maltinsky says, stemmed from a Progress Pride flag he hung on his cubicle wall during his time in the Los Angeles Field Office. The flag had been his since 2021, when the office used it to fly over the Wilshire Federal Building during Pride Month because they did not have one of their own. When the month ended, leadership gifted it back to him, and he kept it at his desk for years without controversy.

That changed shortly after President Trump’s second inauguration. A complaint landed on a supervisor’s desk, though Maltinsky says that same supervisor assured him the display was “entirely permissible and appropriate.” But Patel cited the flag in the termination letter presented to Maltinsky, writing: “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 filed a federal lawsuit soon after, arguing he was fired unlawfully and in violation of the First Amendment. The complaint states that the government cannot retaliate against employees “simply for engaging in expressive conduct concerning a matter of public concern.”

From his perspective, the real message of the firing was unmistakable. “Clearly this was not about who I am, but what I am and what I represent,” he said in a recent interview, according to the New York Times. “It’s about trying to stoke fear in the workplace, especially in the queer community at the F.B.I., that has nothing to do with protecting the American people.”

He says the fear spread instantly. “People immediately started scouring their desks of Pride flags, anything personal in nature, even,” he told The Advocate. “People were having meetings for weeks following discussing how this threat of dismissal can now come from inside your workplace.” Within hours, he added, “It spread like wildfire.”

Patel has rejected accusations of politically driven removals. At a Senate hearing, he said: “The only actions we take, generally speaking, for personnel at the FBI, are ones based on merit and qualification and your ability to uphold your constitutional duty. You fall short, you don’t work there anymore.”

“David’s dream was to serve our country as an FBI Special Agent,” said one of Maltinsky’s attorneys, Christopher M. Mattei. “When that dream was cruelly taken from him, he stayed true to his oath and is now fighting to protect the rights of all Americans.” Mattei added: “This case is about far more than one man’s career, it’s about whether the government can punish Americans simply for saying who they are.”

Maltinsky says he refuses to let fear win. “It would be foolish to hide who I am,” he said. “And it would give power to the fear.” He also hopes his colleagues know they are not alone. “We’re not the enemy and we’re not some political mob. We’re proud members of the FBI, and we have a mission to do. We go to work every day to do it,” he told CBS News.

He wants to return to training, but he is also fighting for the workplace he once helped shape. As he puts it, “Diversity means so much to so many different people. There is no one definition that everyone will agree on. What I believe is diversity brings strength.”