Florida sues FEMA after ex-worker says homes with Trump signs were skipped following storm

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody is asking a federal judge to declare that FEMA and one of its former employees violated the civil rights of Florida residents when federal aid crews were directed to skip hurricane-torn homes with Trump campaign signs and flags.

In a federal complaint filed on Wednesday, Moody said the state wants to take legal action against Marn’i Washington, a fired FEMA Disaster Survivor Assistance worker who led crews in Florida after Hurricane Milton, for telling her team to avoid homes advertising pro-Trump signs.

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

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

“I am taking swift legal action to find out how far this political discrimination reaches and to make sure all Americans who fall victim to devastating storms are served, regardless of their political affiliation,” Moody said in a statement on Thursday.

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell — who has 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 condemnation of Washington, but notes that Washington has said in an interview that FEMA made her a “scapegoat” and that she insists that she is a “patsy.

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

“We omitted these homes for safety precautions, not because of political plight,” Washington said.

Moody says her lawsuit seeks to uncover a larger conspiracy, citing Washington’s comments that FEMA officials claiming not to know that the agency was discriminating against Trump supporters are promoting a “lie.”

“As Florida’s officials worked with local government, non-profit organizations, and its people to recover and rebuild, FEMA workers were instructed to deny aid to Trump supporters,” the complaint states.

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

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

A FEMA spokesperson declined to comment on the pending litigation, and pointed to Criswell’s public statements that says 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 referred the matter to the Office of Special Counsel,” Criswell said in the statement. “I will continue to do everything I can to make sure this never happens again.”

Washington did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment.

McClatchy Chief Washington Correspondent Michael Wilner contributed to this report.