BATON ROUGE — Four former lawyers in the state's public defenders office are suing their former boss, alleging their dismissals violated contracts they had with the state.

The four also sued the Louisiana Public Defender Board, alleging it was complicit in Remy Starns' decision to terminate them. The lawsuit, filed last week in East Baton Rouge Parish, claims the four were let go because they disagreed with Starns' policies.

Michelle AndrePont, Brett Brunson, John Hogue and Trisha Ward say state law prevented Starns from firing them without a proper reason.

"These statutes, were intended to, and did, create a protected property interest in the continuation of the contractual relationship between District Defenders and the State, which cannot be terminated without good cause," their lawsuit says.

AndrePont has more than 30 years' experience as a defense lawyer, Brunson has more than 25 years' experience, Hogue has 27 and Ward has at least 14, according to the lawsuit.

Lawmakers in 2024 gave Starns' position extra power over administrative matters; AndrePont and Brunson testified against  his expanded authority when the matter was before a legislative committee.

Louisiana's public defender law says that, at each stage of a legal proceeding, a defendant is entitled to a lawyer if they are indigent and face a possible prison term. According to the plaintiffs, the law was written in a way to insulate the agency from political interference, and that protections were put in place for those serving as public defenders.

After receiving a favorable opinion from the attorney general's office saying he could terminate public defenders, including those who had spoken against his extra powers, Starns notified the plaintiffs in February that their contracts wouldn't be renewed. An oversight board ultimately declined to intervene.

The four seek reinstatement and back pay.