The prosecutor that U.S. Attorney for Oregon Amanda Marshall is accused
of stalking was at the time under 24-hour-a-day armed protective guard because of a
contract Mexican drug dealers placed on his life.
That news adds a bizarre turn in a situation that appears to have cost
Marshall, the top federal prosecutor in Oregon, her job.
Sources familiar with the situation tell WW Marshall's subordinate,
Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Kerin, filed a hostile workplace
environment complaint against Marshall after receiving numerous unwanted
text and email messages from her, and after she followed him outside
working hours.
At the time, federal agents were protecting Kerin against a credible threat on his life. Such precautions are rare, according to people familiar with the U.S. attorney's office.
Kerin's wife, Michelle, is also a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney's office.
"As some of you know, Scott Kerin has been under a 24/7 U.S.
Marshal protection detail for the last four months," Kerin's direct
supervisor, Pamala Holsinger, wrote to U.S. attorney's office staff
March 9, according to an email obtained by WW.
"That detail has, at times, interfered with work, but is
scheduled to come to an end soon. In an effort to get his case load back
on track, including indicting a significant multi-defendant wiretap
case, Scott has asked Tom Edmonds to temporarily take over the
administrative functions and duties of the Drug Unit Chief."
Scott Kerin and Marshall, who became the U.S. attorney for Oregon after President Obama named her to the post in 2010, have not responded to requests for comment. The U.S. attorney's office also declined to answer questions about the situation.
The shakeup at the U.S. attorney's office comes as Marshall was overseeing Oregon's highest profile public corruption investigation in decades: the investigation into alleged conflict of interest and influence peddling allegations involving ex-Gov. John Kitzhaber and his fiancée, former first lady Cylvia Hayes.
WWeek 2015