Former FBI agent loses discrimination case; agent claimed he was wrongfully terminated, but jurors didn’t buy it
Published 5:36 pm Friday, August 16, 2019
On Friday a federal jury in Hattiesburg found that Plaintiff Warren Flowers, a former Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation who had been fired by the agency, failed to prove that his termination was the result of retaliation for filing a claim of discrimination against his supervisors, announced U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office represented the FBI at trial and, during the trial, introduced evidence that the FBI had fired Flowers for his repeated lack of candor. For example, Flowers admitted in a signed, sworn statement that he had knowingly falsified a FBI form seeking approval to use a confidential human source. When confronted by his supervisor, Flowers falsely claimed he had received approval when he knew he had not.
“The FBI did the right thing with regard to Warren Flowers and a jury of his peers agreed,” said U.S. Attorney Hurst. “I want to commend our attorneys who defended the FBI in this suit. We as citizens expect nothing less from our law enforcement officers than honesty and candor, and those who cannot simply tell the truth should not expect to remain in this honored profession.”
The suit was filed by Flowers in 2017 against the United States Attorney General. Prior to trial, the Court dismissed Flowers’ claims of race discrimination and hostile work environment.
Hurst applauded the excellent legal work in defending the FBI performed by Assistant United States Attorneys Angela Givens Williams and Kristi Johnson.