Kroger
Rosenblum
SALEM, Ore. (Legal Newsline) - A former state energy official has sued outgoing Oregon Attorney General John Kroger, his former chief criminal investigator and the state Department of Justice.
Mark Long, the former interim director of the Oregon Department of Energy, filed his lawsuit Thursday in Marion County Circuit Court, according to The Oregonian.
Long's suit claims Kroger, Sean Riddell and the DOJ violated his constitutional rights, destroyed documents and tampered with witnesses in an investigation into Long's awarding of a DOE contract to Cylvia Hayes.
Hayes, described as a "green energy entrepreneur" by The Oregonian, is Gov. John Kitzhaber's longtime companion.
The newspaper reported Long is seeking $7.5 million in damages.
Long and other DOE employees were cleared of any wrongdoing in the DOJ's investigation.
Riddell, whose investigative methods have since been questioned, left the department in May.
Meanwhile, Kroger is leaving his post later this month to become the head of Reed College, a private, independent liberal arts college in Portland.
He had announced in October he would not seek another term as the state's top lawyer, citing an unspecified illness.
Earlier this month, Kitzhaber appointed Ellen Rosenblum to serve out the rest of Kroger's term.
Rosenblum, a Democrat, will become Oregon's first woman attorney general as of June 29.
The governor's appointment means Rosenblum, a former appeals court judge, will occupy the Attorney General's Office while campaigning for her election in November.
Portland attorney James Buchal, a GOP write-in candidate, is her opponent.
From Legal Newsline: Reach Jessica Karmasek by email at jessica@legalnewsline.com.