A former top lawyer in Attorney General Kathleen Kane's office sued her on Monday, saying she fired him in retaliation for grand jury testimony that helped Montgomery County prosecutors bring perjury charges against her.
James Barker's federal lawsuit filed in Harrisburg said Kane has made false explanations about his termination "that call into question his good name, honor and integrity." He said his constitutional rights of freedom of speech and due process of law were violated, and he is seeking his job back along with damages and legal costs.
Barker, 53, was fired in April from his job of six years as chief deputy attorney general in charge of the office's criminal appeals cases and grand juries.
Kane's spokesman Chuck Ardo said the office will review the lawsuit and respond accordingly.
"But I can tell you without hesitation that the attorney general will defend herself vigorously," Ardo said.
The lawsuit said Kane moved to fire Barker after publication of a March 16 story in The Philadelphia Inquirer about Barker's testimony. The lawsuit said his testimony contradicted Kane's own testimony in an investigation into whether she authorized the release of investigative information that was subject to criminal records secrecy laws.
"Mr. Barker seeks to hold Ms. Kane accountable for her malicious and wanton conduct in retaliating against him and defaming his reputation," Barker's lawyers wrote.
At the time, Barker said he was fired abruptly by a superior without explanation.
In the following days, Kane's office said that Barker was let go as part of restructuring, and it cited his "supervisory accountability" amid news reports on grand jury proceedings.
The lawsuit claims Kane told two senior officials in her office that she wanted to fire Barker for including the names of two third parties in a grand jury report. But the lawsuit says those names were "legal entities at issue" in the investigation, and those same two senior officials had approved their appearance in the report.
Kane awaits trial in Montgomery County on charges she leaked secret grand jury information last year to a Philadelphia Daily News reporter in an effort to embarrass two former state prosecutors and then attempted to cover it up. She adamantly maintains she did not break the law.
Local
Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
The state Supreme Court has issued a temporary, indefinite suspension of her law license that takes effect later this month.
