A federal judge has ruled that Omarosa Manigault Newman will not be allowed to force former President Donald Trump to sit for a deposition after the Justice Department sued her following her firing.
Newman's attorneys have argued that they should be allowed to depose Trump and former chief of staff John Kelly because the lawsuit was filed against her in retaliation for speaking out about her time at the White House. The Justice Department's lawsuit alleges that Newman failed to file a financial disclosure statement after leaving her job.
Judge Richard Leon ruled on Wednesday that Trump and Kelly have protection from depositions because of their former positions, CNN reported.
"The need to protect the integrity of the underlying decision-making process, and encourage public service by protecting officials from 'indiscriminate depositions,' continue to persist after the official leaves government service," Leon wrote in his opinion.
"Defendant has not carried her burden of demonstrating that deposing former President Trump is appropriate. Unfortunately for defendant, even assuming former President Trump has first-hand knowledge about how this case was referred to the Department of Justice, this information is irrelevant to any claim or defense in this case," the judge added.
Leon said that Newman's attorneys would be permitted to depose a Justice Department lawyer who allegedly has knowledge about the situation.
