Alvin Bragg accused of ‘unlawful discrimination’ in hiring in new legal filing

America First Legal (AFL) filed the complaint on Tuesday, charging that DA Bragg violated "the New York Rules of Professional Conduct by engaging in illegal DEI practices such as recruiting, hiring, and retaining staff based on race and sex."

The Manhattan District Attorney's Office states on its website that it is "committed to the recruitment, hiring, retention, and promotion of a diverse staff," and that the office has "diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice priorities."

AFL argued in the complaint that the New York Rules of Professional Conduct prohibits lawyers and firms from engaging in "unlawful discrimination." This includes government firms, and law violations are classified as "misconduct."

Additionally, America First Legal alleged the district attorney's office violated the New York Human Rights Law and the Civil Rights Act in a federal civil rights filing earlier this month with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

"If Mr. Bragg and his colleagues are demographically balancing the Manhattan District Attorney Office's employees, they knowingly violate state and Federal non-discrimination laws," said AFL.

America First Legal argued that DA Bragg's office has been using the DEI initiatives to fill "approximately fifty openings each year for legal staff positions. There is also no option to select "heterosexual" in a gender, race, and ethnicity drop-down menu, but there is an option to select "LGBT."

Dan Epstein, vice president of America First Legal, said in a statement: "No American workplace is permitted to discriminate based on race or sex. That is illegal. We should expect that those who carry out law enforcement are held to the highest legal compliance standards. Under Alvin Bragg's leadership, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office appears to have fallen below those high standards and unlawfully discriminated against employment applicants to his office."

"Lawyers are guardians of the Constitution and the law; compliance with the highest ethical standards is necessary to serve those who need access to justice with fidelity," Epstein concluded.