FBI Director Kash Patel defended recent changes to the bureau’s hiring standards Tuesday, telling the Senate Judiciary Committee that the revisions were intended to prevent human trafficking victims from being automatically disqualified from FBI employment because of conduct they were forced to commit.

The FBI changed its guidance earlier this year regarding applicants with histories involving prostitution and childhood experiences involving bestiality. Patel said the changes followed reviews of cases in which trafficking victims had been barred from consideration because of conduct that occurred under coercion. He emphasized that removing an automatic disqualification does not mean applicants bypass the FBI’s screening process.

“We did not want to punish victims of bestiality, victims who were trafficked,” Patel told senators. “We did not want to make it an automatic disqualification for the FBI to consider you if you are a victim of these awful, heinous acts.” He said applicants would still have to meet the bureau’s other requirements and undergo its standard vetting process.

Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana questioned Patel about the rationale for including bestiality in the revised policy. Patel explained that the recommendation initially surprised him as well, but that officials presented cases involving people who had been forced into such conduct through trafficking. He said the policy was intended to allow those cases to be evaluated individually rather than automatically rejected.

The FBI has maintained that the changes do not eliminate all employment restrictions. The bureau continues to bar certain applicants based on recent or voluntary criminal conduct, including some prostitution-related activity. Patel said the goal was to distinguish victims who were coerced from applicants who voluntarily engaged in disqualifying conduct.

The policy changes came under scrutiny during a broader oversight hearing covering FBI staffing, investigations and election security. Patel also defended his record at the bureau and said the agency continues to maintain rigorous hiring standards.