By LARRY NEUMEISTER
NEW YORK (AP) — Fired federal prosecutor Maurene Comey sued the U.S. authorities Monday over her abrupt dismissal and is looking for to get her job again, saying it got here with out trigger or discover and was illegal and unconstitutional.
The lawsuit was filed in Manhattan federal court docket, the place Comey — the daughter of former FBI director James Comey — has earned reward for her dealing with of main complicated prosecutions, notably in intercourse abuse circumstances.
Comey sought her reinstatement, together with a declaration that her firing was illegal and a violation of the “Separation of Powers” as it’s described within the U.S. Structure.
“Defendants haven’t offered any rationalization by any means for terminating Ms. Comey. In fact, there isn’t a professional rationalization,” the lawsuit mentioned, blaming the firing on the truth that her father is James Comey, “or due to her perceived political affiliation and beliefs, or each.”
James Comey was fired as FBI director by President Donald Trump in 2017. The lawsuit famous that he has since written a memoir important of Trump and has continued to publicly criticize Trump and his Administration, together with a social media submit in Might Trump and different perceived as threatening.
The lawsuit famous that Maurene Comey’s firing in July got here the day after her supervisors had requested her to take the lead on a serious public corruption case and three months after she’d obtained her newest “Excellent” evaluate.
“The politically motivated termination of Ms. Comey — ostensibly underneath ‘Article II of the Structure’ — upends bedrock rules of our democracy and justice system,” the lawsuit mentioned. “Assistant United States Attorneys like Ms. Comey should do their jobs with out fearing or favoring any political celebration or perspective, guided solely by the regulation, the info, and the pursuit of justice.”
Named as defendants within the lawsuit had been, amongst others, the Justice Division, the Govt Workplace of the President, U.S. Legal professional Basic Pamela Bondi, the Workplace of Personnel Administration and america.
A message for remark from the Justice Division was not instantly returned.
Comey’s July 16 firing got here amid a spate of dismissals of prosecutors by the Justice Division with out rationalization, elevating alarm that civil service protections meant to forestall terminations for political causes had been being missed.
The Justice Division additionally has fired some prosecutors who labored on circumstances which have provoked Trump’s ire, together with some who dealt with U.S. Capitol riot circumstances and legal professionals and assist workers who labored on particular counsel Jack Smith’s prosecutions of Trump.
She turned a rising star in her workplace for her work on the case towards financier Jeffrey Epstein and his onetime girlfriend, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, and the current prosecution of music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Maxwell is serving a 20-year jail sentence after her December 2021 conviction on intercourse trafficking prices. Epstein took his personal life in a federal jail in August 2019 as he awaited trial on intercourse trafficking prices. Combs is awaiting sentencing subsequent month after his conviction on prostitution-related prices after he was exonerated in July of extra critical intercourse trafficking and racketeering conspiracy prices.
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