LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The firing of former Las Vegas FBI Special Agent in Charge Spencer Evans was improper, and raises serious due process questions, his attorney said Wednesday.
Mark Zaid said in an interview that Evans was summarily dismissed without the ability to contest his firing or take advantage of internal appeals. Zaid said a wrongful termination lawsuit will be filed within weeks.
WATCH | FBI firing: Can they do this? Steve Sebelius reports.
In an Aug. 8 letter to Evans from FBI Director Kash Patel, Evans was told he was being terminated because "you demonstrated a lack of reasonableness and overzealousness in the implementation of COVID-19 protocols and policies."
But Zaid questioned that justification.
"One, is there Article II constitutional authority by the FBI director or even the president of the United States to terminate federal employees without any due process or cause whatsoever?" Zaid asked. "And then secondly, if that answer is no, they do not have that authority, then the questions would be ... did he misapply COVID policies? Does that have the merit to be able to support a termination? Which we believe the answer is going to be no to both of those questions."
Evans during the pandemic was serving a stint at FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C., in the bureau's human resources department. In that role, he oversaw Justice Department rules regarding COVID vaccinations, including rules for masking and testing of employees who claimed exemptions from getting the vaccine.
Zaid said a group of former FBI employees have been vocal on social media, messaging members of Congress and Patel about FBI executives they believe wronged them. The attorney said that may be the genesis of Evans's termination.
But NBC News also reported in late January that Evans was on a list of top FBI officials who had been told to resign or be fired. They were among officials promoted by former FBI Director Christopher Wray, who resigned before Trump was sworn in for a second term.
Evans had a 21-year career in the bureau, and worked on investigations including the Boston Marathon bombers. He'd been special agent in charge in Las Vegas since 2022, and had recently been re-assigned to a post in Huntsville, Ala.
But he was fired before he could show up to the Alabama job, Zaid said.
He said the Trump administration was proceeding under the theory that the president can fire anyone in federal service, not just appointees who serve at his pleasure.
"And this administration is identifying all the potential opportunities where it can make an argument that in the past, nobody would have thought to do it because it just didn't seem to be the right thing," Zaid said. "But the argument is there to make, because it's house money. They lose nothing by trying."
Typically, wrongful termination lawsuits seek reinstatement, but Zaid said he expects the case to take years, and doesn't believe the Trump administration will settle. "The Trump administration does not settle. They are all about trench warfare, continuing the fight," he said.
He also questioned the timing, especially since several other top officials were dismissed around the same time, and the fact that the COVID-19 justifications are nearly five years old. "It kind of looks like a wag the dog type situation, just something else to deflect from the Epstein file controversy that's in existence right now," he said.
Channel 13 has reached out to the FBI's Las Vegas office for comment.
Evans has not done interviews, but on his LinkedIn page, he posted a picture of himself gathering his badge, credentials and FBI-issued firearm in preparation for leaving the bureau.
"When I started the week, I didn't know Friday would be my last day in the FBI," he wrote. "This morning, I'm filled with gratitude for a 21-year career that was beyond anything I ever dreamed it could be. After serving coast-to-coast in the New Haven, San Diego, Jacksonville, Oklahoma City and Las Vegas divisions (with two FBIHQ tours in the middle), I'm taking a quiet moment to reflect on the incredible people I've had the privilege to work for and among."
Athough Evans has 21 years of service, he's not yet old enough to retire from the bureau outright, Zaid said.
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