FBI Fires Analysts Behind Memo Linking Traditionalist Catholics to Extremism

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) fired five analysts involved in drafting the 'Richmond Memorandum', a document that associated certain "radical traditionalist Catholic" ideology groups with potential extremist threats.

As reported by The Associated Press, the dismissed employees include four intelligence analysts and a supervisory analyst.

"This action is manifestly unjust, completely unsupported by the facts, and subverts standard FBI policy and procedure. These individuals deserved far better for the exceptional and faithful public service they rendered to protect our country" victims' attorney David Laufman, said in a statement.

The internal memo was prepared in January 2023 by the FBI Richmond Field Office, when the FBI director was Christopher Wray. The eleven-page document was titled as follows: "Interest of Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremists in Radical-Traditionalist Catholic Ideology Almost Certainly Presents New Mitigation Opportunities."

The document cited among its sources the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a non-profit organization criticized by conservative sectors and religious organizations for classifying as extremist groups and movements that hold traditional positions on religion, family and cultural issues.

In addition, and in view of the 2024 presidential elections, it suggested that some extremists could try to use traditional religious communities as spaces for recruitment or ideological dissemination.

Behind closed doors, the FBI conducted an internal investigation into the memo, still under Wray's direction. It found no evidence of malice on the part of the authors, but did conclude that it did not conform to proper standards and contained some errors of professional judgment.

The Trump Administration sharply criticized the memo in a report released in April 2026, titled 'Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias within the Federal Government'. The report cites the 'Richmond Memo' and presents it as one of the most significant examples of alleged anti-Christian bias within the Federal Government.