BREAKING: Swalwell Attorneys Fire Legal Warning Shot at FBI Director Patel, Threatening Federal Lawsuit [READ THE LETTER]
Cease and desist letter obtained by MeidasTouch accuses Patel of violating the Privacy Act, the First Amendment, and DOJ's own rules — with a three-day deadline to comply
WASHINGTON — Attorneys for Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., sent a formal cease and desist letter to FBI Director Kash Patel on Sunday, demanding he immediately halt any effort to publicly release a decade-old investigative file related to the congressman — and threatening to haul him into federal court if he refuses.
The letter, exclusively obtained by MeidasTouch and dated March 30, 2026, was sent by Sean Hecker of Hecker Fink LLP and Norman L. Eisen of Democracy Defenders Action. It was copied to Attorney General Pamela Bondi and FBI General Counsel Sam Ramer — a deliberate, public paper trail that signals Swalwell’s legal team is prepared to escalate fast.
The three-page letter alleges Patel directed the FBI to dig up and release the file on Swalwell, who is currently a leading candidate in California’s June 2 gubernatorial primary. Swalwell’s lawyers say the file relates to a counterintelligence matter in which the congressman cooperated with and assisted the FBI — and that he was never accused of any wrongdoing.
The letter identifies three separate legal landmines Patel would detonate by releasing the file.
First, the Privacy Act of 1974, which prohibits federal agencies from disclosing records without the written consent of the subject. Swalwell hasn’t given it.
Second, the First Amendment. The letter argues that targeting an outspoken political critic using the machinery of federal law enforcement constitutes unlawful retaliation — pointing directly to Patel’s own paper trail of personal animosity. In his 2023 book Government Gangsters, Patel called Swalwell a “corrupt actor of the first order.” At a congressional hearing last September, Patel shouted at Swalwell when the congressman pressed him on the Epstein files.
Third, the DOJ’s own Justice Manual, which explicitly bars agents from timing any action — including public statements — to influence an election. With California’s primary eight weeks out, the letter argues the political motive is impossible to hide.
“Your effort to release this information is a nakedly partisan attempt to target Congressman Swalwell based on his political views,” the letter states. Current and former FBI officials, it notes, have already spoken out against the move — warning the releases would compromise law enforcement sources and methods.
Patel has been given three days to provide written confirmation that he has stood down. If he doesn’t, Swalwell’s legal team says it will seek injunctive relief in federal court.
The letter is a public declaration of war — not just against Patel, but aimed squarely at Bondi’s Justice Department, which is now formally on notice.
Read the letter in its entirety below:
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Eric Swalwell is exactly the kind of fighter we need. Kudos!
This is clearly an example of the current regime attempting to influence the mid-term elections. “If there is nothing to hide…” argument should be directed at the Epstein files.