The head of the FBI's New York field office resigned Monday afternoon, facing pressure from President Donald Trump's administration.
James Dennehy announced his resignation in an email to staff, NBC News reported. His resignation comes after Kash Patel began his first week leading the bureau last week. Before that, Justice Department deputy attorney general, Emil Bove, began a search for all FBI staff who worked on cases around the Jan. 6 attackers. Dennehy clashed with Bove over that probe into the staff.
"Today, we find ourselves in the middle of a battle of our own, as good people are being walked out of the FBI and others are being targeted because they did their jobs in accordance with the law and FBI policy," wrote Dennehy in an email to staffers in the office.
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NBC News noted that Dennehy "spent six years in the Marine Corps before joining the FBI after the Sept. 11 attacks." He specialized in counter-proliferation of weapons.
"Late Friday, I was informed that I needed to put my retirement papers in today, which I just did. I was not given a reason for this decision," Dennehy said in an email to staff, ABC News reported after obtaining a copy.
"Regardless, I apologize to all of you for not being able to fulfill my commitment to you to serve as ADIC [assistant director in charge] NY for at least two years," he continued. "But as I leave today, I have an immense feeling of pride - to have represented an office of professionals who will always do the right thing for the right reasons; who will always seek the truth while upholding the rule of law; who will always follow the facts no matter where they lead and be unapologetic about it; who will never bend, break, falter, or quit on your integrity; who will always handle cases and evidence with an overabundance of caution and care for the innocent, the victims, and the process first; and who will always remain independent."
Speaking on the matter, former FBI general counsel Andrew Weissmann said on MSNBC it was a "big blow" to the FBI.
"This is somebody who, just like we saw in the prosecutor's office in New York, the prosecutor's office in main justice, the prosecutor's office in D.C ‚ this is — it's useful to remember... This sort of resistance started at the FBI. And this is sort of the next rung below the director and the deputy director. All of the assistant directors, the heads of the field offices, of which this fellow is the largest field office in the bureau."
Weissmann called the office the FBI's "crown jewel."
Weissmann was a 15-year federal prosecutor in the Eastern District of New York, where he led the criminal division. He pointed out that the New York field office is also the core of the anti-terrorism programs.
"This is somebody who basically had to be forced out by the Trump administration because he was by all accounts saying, 'You know what? I was trained to believe in facts and law,'" said Weissmann. "It's again, another sign of where we are."
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