FBI director Kash Patel defended dropping automatic disqualifications for bestiality before 18 and declined to say agents are barred from polling places
An internal June 16 memo also allows applicants who hired prostitutes fewer than three times a decade ago, while federal law imposes five-year prison terms for armed personnel at polls.
FBI Director Kash Patel defended revised suitability rules that ease hiring bars for past misconduct during five hours of questioning before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, Sept. 15. Both Dick Durbin (Sen-D Illinois) and John Kennedy (Sen-R Louisiana) challenged Patel over how the standards treat criminal acts. The suitability standard. The policy replaces automatic disqualification with whole-person reviews. Applicants remain eligible if animal abuse occurred before adulthood, or if job-related theft occurred more than three years ago. Patel testified that applicants who engaged in bestiality were trafficking victims. He argued they should not be penalized. Durbin noted the memo covers anyone who engaged in the act, without specifying coercion. Patel told Kennedy that anyone committing the offense as an adult belongs in prison. What next. Committee Democrats demanded that the bureau turn over the unredacted June 16 electronic communication. They also demanded a full count of applicants cleared under the new rules.
The latest enforcement records Patel cited to defend his tenure:
- The FBI has captured 10 of its top 10 Most Wanted fugitives and 6 of 10 top fraudsters during Donald Trump's second term.
- Violent crime fell 9.3% from 2024 to 2025 according to FBI data, alongside a 90% increase in violent crime arrests.
- Arrests of violent gang members increased 31% over the same period.