Florida Sues FEMA After Former Employee Says Homes With Trump Signs Missed After Storm

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody is asking a federal judge to rule that FEMA and one of its former employees violated the civil rights of Floridians when federal aid teams were ordered to pass through hurricane-damaged homes bearing Trump campaign signs and flags.

In a federal complaint filed Wednesday, Moody said the state wants to sue Marnie Washington, a fired FEMA Disaster Survivor Assistance employee who led crews in Florida after Hurricane Milton, for telling her team to avoid homes with pro-Trump ads. . signs

“While the facts will continue to emerge over the weeks and months, it is clear that Defendant Washington conspired with senior FEMA officials, as well as those who carried out her orders, to violate the civil rights of the citizens of Florida,” the complaint states.

The legal battle is the latest effort to seek accountability for the episode, which has already prompted Republican lawmakers in Washington to threaten a congressional investigation and the DeSantis administration to launch a state probe into the matter.

“I am taking immediate legal action to find out how far this political discrimination goes and to make sure that all Americans affected by the devastating storms get help, regardless of their political affiliation,” Moody said in a statement Thursday.

FEMA Administrator Dean Criswell, who publicly called Washington’s directive “reprehensible” and said it violated FEMA’s “core values ​​and principles,” is also named in Moody’s lawsuit.

In the federal complaint, Moody acknowledges Criswell’s conviction of Washington, but notes that Washington said in an interview that FEMA made her a “scapegoat” and she insists she is a “boy.”

Earlier this week Washington told Roland Martin, a longtime media commentatorin his digital show that FEMA provides clear guidance on how to deal with “politically hostile” communities, regardless of their political affiliation. Washington said that during previous deployments, Washington told her team to avoid any streets where multiple homes were verbally abusive to FEMA campaigners, including properties that had signs for the Harris campaign and homes with no signs at all.

“We put these houses down for security reasons, not for political reasons,” Washington said.

Moody says her lawsuit aims to expose a larger conspiracy, citing Washington’s comments that FEMA officials who say they didn’t know the agency discriminated against Trump supporters are promoting “lies.”

“As Florida officials worked with local governments, nonprofits and the public to recover and rebuild, FEMA officials were directed to deny assistance to Trump supporters,” the complaint states.

“While the facts will continue to emerge over the weeks and months, it is clear that Defendant Washington conspired with senior FEMA officials, as well as those who carried out her orders, to violate the civil rights of the citizens of Florida,” the complaint states.

Moody is asking the court to find that FEMA conspired to interfere with the civil rights of Florida citizens and is seeking both nominal and punitive damages.

A FEMA spokesman declined to comment on pending litigation and pointed to Criswell’s public statements that the federal agency will continue to hold people accountable if they violate the agency’s standards of conduct.

“This employee has been terminated and we have turned the case over to the Office of Special Counsel,” Criswell said in a statement. “I will continue to do everything I can to make sure this never happens again.”

Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

McClatchy Chief Washington correspondent Michael Willner contributed to this report.