Marie Wolf, one of the three managing attorneys at the appellate division of the state public defenders, has either been fired or resigned. But her last day is July 23rd.
In a weird twist today Wolf notified her boss David Merchant that she wanted to resign her post and step back into a full-time attorney position and handle cases. Instead Merchant sent out an e-mail to the attorneys and staff at the office that he had accepted her resignation. Wolf followed that e-mail with another one that said she offered to stay on as a full-time attorney.
This is the latest chapter in the ongoing turmoil at the appellate division. Wolf was one of the attorneys critical of the board of public defense’s decision to hire Merchant back in February. He came from the employment law division at the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office and some attorneys argued he lacked the necessary appellate work experience for the position. Wolf resigned her post in protest of the hire. Merchant beat out at least two other candidates from within the office, and a third who had done work there.
Several attorneys at the office sent letters to Gov. Tim Pawlenty and the board asking them to reconsider their decision to hire Merchant.
(More on the background of this story here)
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Marie Wolf was, in fact, fired today after 25 years in the state public defender’s office. This is a fairly clear case of retaliation. Just this week, she complained about Merchant’s management skills to one of the higher-ups who installed Merchant as chief, and to Merchant himself. Merchant is flipping out, and this is probably only the beginning. Marie’s termination is appalling. She is a talented appellate attorney and a fabulous manager, and she has always been incredibly dedicated to the office. (She was the Interim Chief Public Defender, for crying out loud. She is not, and has never been, a loose cannon. Except that she criticized Merchant.) Merchant has demonstrated time and time again that he has no idea how to lead the office. Now, I question his mental stability.