A federal judge appointed by Joe Biden dismissed a lawsuit Thursday that aimed to stop President Donald Trump’s administration from revealing the identities of FBI agents involved in the heavily politicized January 6 investigations.

U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb, despite acknowledging concerns for agents’ safety, sided with the Trump administration’s request to throw out the case, which was filed by FBI employees desperate to keep their names hidden after President Trump’s Justice Department sought a full accounting of those who worked on the now-infamous probes.

“Plaintiffs filed these cases in a whirlwind of chaos and fear,” Cobb wrote, citing concerns that agents could be doxed or worse by former defendants—many of whom have since been pardoned by President Trump.

Yet in the ruling, Cobb conceded that the Justice Department had made no immediate move to publicize agent identities, stating the plaintiffs had failed to show “that such a disclosure is imminent.” With that, the court dismissed the agents’ claims.

The FBI agents, backed by the FBI Agents Association, filed the suit in February—just after eight senior agents were terminated and Principal Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove requested the full list of names. Bove, who is also Trump’s nominee to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals, has made clear the DOJ intends to conduct a full review of FBI personnel who led the politically charged January 6 cases.

Though Bove has stopped short of promising disciplinary action, he notably did not rule it out—nor did he deny that some terminations could still occur. The DOJ has also asked agents to complete a questionnaire about their specific roles in the Jan. 6 probe.

Attorneys for the FBI agents say they’re prepared to go back to court if the DOJ violates its “promise” not to expose the agents.

“We are proud to defend the FBI employees who bravely investigated the January 6th attacks,” attorneys Margaret Donovan and Chris Mattei said. “We stand ready to return to Court immediately if the Government does not live up to its obligations.”

Meanwhile, Bove reiterated that no FBI employee who acted “ethically” would face consequences. But critics argue the Jan. 6 investigations were anything but ethical—characterized instead by politically motivated prosecutions, media leaks, and a sweeping surveillance dragnet that included ordinary Americans.

The ruling comes as the FBI, under the leadership of Deputy Director Dan Bongino, works to clean up its public image following years of politicization. Just last week, Bongino announced a major national security win: the dismantling of a sprawling Chinese espionage ring operating inside the U.S.

According to Bongino, agents executed eight search warrants and made arrests in San Francisco, Houston, Portland, and San Diego, breaking up what he called a “sophisticated” spy network tied directly to the Chinese Communist Party. The network was allegedly targeting U.S. military personnel and attempting to extract classified defense information, including missile and drone technology.

“This is your FBI, and you deserve to know about the work we’re doing every day to keep our country and citizens safe,” Bongino said in a statement posted to X.

Since President Trump returned to office in January 2025, the FBI has arrested 51 foreign agents tied to China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea—charging them with everything from sanctions evasion and economic espionage to smuggling biological materials.

With nearly 5,000 open counterintelligence cases and 800 new ones already launched this year, Bongino says the bureau is shifting back to its core mission: defending America from foreign threats—not policing political dissent at home.