Inside Scoop: CIA Faces Internal 'Me Too' Challenge as Reports of Sexual Misconduct Surface Publicly
Two instances have led to misdemeanor assault convictions in Virginia. In September, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., sentenced a ex-CIA officer to 30 years in prison for drugging and sexually assaulting numerous women.
Under the surface, more allegations are continuing to harm the infamously secretive intelligence agency, including at least one that led to an officer's dismissal, as CNN has discovered.
Recently, a series of female whistleblowers have appeared before Congress in private to share additional accusations of sexual assault and harassment at the CIA.
Earlier this year, a comprehensive report by the agency's inspector general and a subsequent review by congressional investigators revealed significant flaws in how the CIA handled complaints.
Likewise, in response to what some have labeled as the CIA's "Me Too" moment, the agency has implemented a major reform initiative over the past year. This includes establishing a dedicated department to handle allegations of sexual assault and harassment, and hiring a law enforcement officer to facilitate investigations — part of a broader effort to make it easier for CIA agents to report a crime without endangering classified info, including their cover.
Moreover, the CIA has conducted its first internal survey aimed at understanding the extent of its sexual harassment problem.
The data, which has not been reported before, implies that the CIA may have a slightly higher rate of workplace sexual violence compared to the national average — and considerably lower than the US military, another large national security agency that has grappled with sexual assault among its personnel.
According to the results, which were shared with CNN by multiple sources including CIA Chief Operating Officer Maura Burns, 28% of respondents reported encountering at least one sexually hostile work environment during their time at the CIA, while 9% indicated such an incident happened in the previous 12 months.
Additionally, 7% of respondents reported experiencing at least one instance of unwanted sexual contact or assault during their career at the agency, with 1% reporting that it took place in the last 12 months.
Compared to the 6.8% of women in the military who encountered some form of unwanted sexual contact in 2023; or the less than 0.5% reported across the federal government in recent years.
The survey elicited mixed reactions within the agency. For some, it suggested less of a problem presently compared to past times.
However, several current CIA officials who spoke to CNN on condition of anonymity — as well as victims and their advocates — claim the survey also reveals the CIA still needs to work on shifting a "work hard, play hard" culture that has unevenly enforced prohibitions against unwanted sexual conduct for a long time.
"I do believe the culture shift will be the hardest and will take the longest," said a senior CIA officer. "Half of our workforce is female, and so I wouldn't quite define it as the 'good ole boy' network — but I do think there is an unevenness to the accountability and discipline of behavior like this."
"I have officers come and talk to me and say, 'Why did this person get away with this and this person didn't?' That's legitimate," the officer said.
CIA confronts severe accusations
Although the survey indicates the CIA may have a similar level of workplace sexual violence as the national average — 5.6% of women in the US report experiencing some form of sexual violence from a workplace-related offender throughout their life — its findings should not be relied upon heavily due to several constraints.
Firstly, it was optional, and only a quarter of agency employees participated. Consequently, participants with strong opinions about this subject may have skewed the results higher than reality.
Experts stress that sexual assault and harassment are historically underreported. Furthermore, employees may not trust their anonymity will be protected, causing them to abstain from engaging — potentially skewing the results lower than the reality.
The results are also being publicly announced within the CIA at a time when it is facing several particularly heinous allegations.
A young female contractor has asserted that a more senior officer entered her home armed, demanding sexual favors, and later gave her a knife on CIA premises as a "threat," according to a federal complaint obtained by CNN and three sources with knowledge of the incident. That official has been dismissed from the agency, according to two of the sources.
Another woman claims she is "one of at least five self-identified sexual assault victims" of an officer who was previously stationed in Europe, according to multiple sources and a letter sent to the US ambassador in that country by one of the alleged victims. Though there are no claims of bodily harm, the officer has been accused of intentionally infecting his alleged victims with a sexually transmitted disease — a possible felony under Virginia law if proven that the infected individual had "the intent to transmit the infection." The officer is under investigation by the CIA.
At least some of the alleged assaults reportedly occurred in Virginia and have been reported to state authorities, according to the letter and another source familiar with the matter. That individual remains employed at CIA headquarters pending the results of the investigation.
Senior CIA officials, including Chief Operating Officer Maura Burns and Director Bill Burns – no relation – have openly emphasized their commitment to taking the issue extremely seriously.
In instances where an accusation of misconduct such as assault is raised, the responsible agency performs its own appraisal of threats to evaluate if the suspect could endanger their colleagues. As Maura Burns put it, "The first step is ensuring the victim and the accused do not interact with each other."
In scenarios where a report is submitted to law enforcement, the agency holds back on additional investigations until the legal process concludes. This is the position the alleged offender and their victims find themselves in, for example.
Provided that the potential threat to the victim or others is carefully evaluated, this strategy aligns with recommended practices, according to Palumbo.
'Contact the authorities'
Doubts about the application of the new policies arose during a September 25 town hall with Dr. Taleeta Jackson, the head of the CIA's Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention Office, and Maura Burns. Some officers expressed confusion about how to report a crime without breaching rules regarding classified information disclosure.
Officials acknowledged that the challenge is understandable, given that the importance of preserving one's cover is ingrained in new agents from day one. This laid bare an area where some managers might be handling reports incorrectly, potentially discouraging victims from reporting assaults.
Burns responded directly: "Contact the authorities. We'll sort out the cover issue. Don't worry about that." However, there remains uncertainty and apprehension about this approach, as evidenced by the questions asked during the town hall.
Some victims allege that they are still deterred from reporting assaults to law enforcement. An Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filing from a self-identified victim in June seeks class-action status for victims at the agency. The filing accuses the agency of inappropriately pressuring victims to falsify aspects of their stories if they contacted law enforcement or faced disciplinary action for disclosing classified information.
The office responsible for internal threat assessments reportedly advised the victim to report the assault to local law enforcement, but emphasized that under no circumstances should they reveal their affiliation with the CIA, the perpetrator's affiliation, or the locations of the assaults, some of which were on CIA property.
The victim, identified as Daniella Sparks in the complaint, wrote that both the Threat Management Unit and the Office of General Counsel encouraged her and other victims to provide false statements to law enforcement and warned them that associating themselves with the CIA in any way would constitute mishandling classified information.
'Still work to be done'
One of the CIA's challenges is balancing the need to protect victims and ensure fairness while respecting the accused's right to defend themselves against serious allegations. Some officers fear that the reporting process could be exploited, several current officials said.
In at least one case — an alleged assault in a stairwell at CIA's headquarters in Langley, Virginia, resulting in a misdemeanor conviction — the defendant is appealing on the grounds of false accusation.
The agency plans to conduct an annual internal survey, a practice that experts consider effective for enhancing survey value over time.
For now, said Burns, "We view it as a snapshot of people's experiences and perceptions."
The agency's next priority is education, with a focus on training managers to handle instances of assault and harassment, and informing the workforce about the resources and rights available to them. Jackson will be traveling internationally in the coming year to standardize this training at the agency's worldwide outposts, Burns stated.
"We still have work to do," said Burns. "We are not where we need to be. I don't need a survey to tell me that."
The alleged incidents of sexual assault and harassment at the CIA have sparked intense discussions in the realm of politics, with the Agency's handling of these complaints becoming a topic of national debate.
Furthermore, the release of the survey results revealing a potential higher rate of workplace sexual violence at the CIA compared to the national average has raised questions about the effectiveness of the measures implemented by the agency to combat this issue.
