MONROE – Attorneys representing 4th District Court law clerk Allyson Campbell requested that the Louisiana Attorney General's Office drop the lawsuit against her once it became clear that the plaintiff may have had motives based on her dislike for Campbell.
The plaintiff, 4th Judicial Court Judge Sharon Marchman, accused Campbell and eight others of violating her First and 14th Amendment rights. Marchman argued that Campbell committed illegal acts and the others tried to cover for her.
Marchman was seeking monetary damages, injunctive relief and declaratory judgment. She also requested a trial by jury.
“Assistant Attorney General Brandon J. Fremin said in a letter dated July 15 and addressed to 4th Judicial District Attorney Jerry Jones that the state attorney general's office will not prosecute Campbell, a law clerk for the 4th District Court,” a recent article from The News Star recently said.
Campbell’s attorneys also explained that any accusations are a reflection of Marchman’s vindictiveness and dislike for Campbell.
"There was no criminal activity for plaintiff to expose to the public," Campbell's attorneys said in The News Star. "There never was any criminal activity. It should be obvious to the court now that the actions taken by the plaintiff against Allyson Campbell (including the filing of the suit) were clear and unadulterated harassment resulting from plaintiff’s dislike for Allyson Campbell.”
The attorneys also explained that the actions of the accused defendants to resist harassment of Campbell are not now, and never were, a conspiracy to retaliate and violate Marchman’s constitutional rights.
According to The News Star article, Campbell had been accused of committing payroll fraud and destroying or concealing court documents in three civil cases, including the one instigated by Marchman.
“The accusations started in Palowsky v. Cork, a 2013 case,” the article said. “Stanley R. Palowsky III sought the recusal of 4th Judicial Court Judges Wilson Rambo, Carl Sharp and eventually the whole bench. According to court documents, Palowsky III alleged that Rambo lacked fairness and impartiality and accused him of causing undue delays, showing bias and prejudice against his attorneys, showing clear favoritism to opposing counsel and improperly supervising his law clerk, Campbell.”
Palowsky v. Campbell, the second to be filed, was dismissed on Nov. 5, 2015. Court documents filed April 1, showed the case was moved to the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeal and oral arguments were set for Aug. 8.
“The Louisiana State Police and the Inspector General's Office carried out an investigation into the complaints regarding payroll fraud and document destruction,” the report said. “Louisiana Inspector General Stephen B. Street Jr. said his office found no sufficient cause to arrest Campbell, citing the report his office compiled with the Louisiana State Police.”
In the court document, Campbell claimed that Palowsky’s allegations against her are false. She remains the focus of ongoing litigation in state and federal courts, including the focus of a lawsuit pursued by Marchman in U.S. District Court.
“Five judges at 4th Judicial District Court were also named defendants in Palowsky’s July 2015 lawsuit. Palowsky accused the judges — Rambo, Fred Amman, Carl Sharp, Stephens Winters, and court administrator Ben Jones — of conspiring to cover up Campbell’s payroll fraud and document destruction,” a July 27 article from The Ouachita Citizen said. “Those same accusations became the subject of Marchman’s federal lawsuit, since the judge claimed her constitutional rights were violated when she tried to expose the conspiracy and criminal activity.”
Both Palowsky’s and Marchman’s lawsuits are still ongoing, but Campbell asserts that the lawsuits against her and others will be resolved in her favor.
According to Campbell’s lawsuit, she claims Palowsky and his attorneys sought to damage her personal and professional reputation by spreading accusations against her in lengthy pleadings filed into the court record.
“If their actions were not conducted with malice, it was with general negligence,” Campbell said.