PHOENIX — A Maricopa County Superior Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by fired prosecutor April Sponsel against her former boss.

In the five-page decision below, Judge Daniel Viola ruled that Sponsel's defamation and false light claims fail at a fundamental level and should be dismissed with prejudice. wrote.

Her attorney, Tom Moring, issued an emailed statement saying, “At this time, Ms. Sponsel has not made a decision regarding her right to appeal, and we are reviewing that decision. Of course, we is disappointed.”

Sponsel filed the lawsuit in February 2022.

She said she had personal knowledge of former county attorney Alistair Adel's plans to charge a group of police protesters with criminal street gangs and falsely accused her of turning violent in response to public backlash. He claimed that he had accused him of

Sponsel was placed on leave and ultimately fired because the 2021 ABC15 investigation that exposed her incidents against protesters was based on outrageous lies and exaggerations.

The dismissal of the case marks Sponsel's latest legal loss.

In December, Arizona's chief disciplinary judge suspended her law license for two years for misconduct in the protest case.

Contact ABC15 Chief Investigator Dave Biscobing at Dave@ABC15.com.