Department of Justice report says FBI’s 2023 Richmond memo was ‘grave failure’ of responsibility

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was guilty of a “grave failure” of responsibility in the drafting of its controversial 2023 “Catholic memo” that sought to link racist and violent extremists with so-called “radical-traditionalist” Catholics, the U.S. Department of Justice said this week.

The Justice Department on Aug. 28 released an extensive report on the memo, which was drafted out of the FBI’s Richmond, Virginia, field office and leaked in early 2023.

Upon its leak the memo drew immediate criticism from Catholics and religious liberty advocates around the country. The FBI quickly retracted the document after the leak, with the bureau claiming that it did “not meet our exacting standards.”

On Aug. 28 FBI Director Kash Patel described the contents of the memo as “unacceptable.” He said the release of information “about what occurred under [the Biden administration] is an important part of the process” of ongoing investigations into alleged government weaponization.

Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, meanwhile, described the memo as “a clear abuse of power,” one that targeted “conservative and religious beliefs disfavored by agents of government.”…