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· collected 2026-09-05 · by James Cirrone
U.S. District Judge David A. Bragdon has ruled that former Sen. Kyrsten Sinema can be sued under North Carolina's "homewrecker" law for allegedly helping break up a marriage by having an affair with Matthew Ammel, who was her security detail member. The lawsuit, filed by Heather Ammel, claims damages from Sinema, alleging she interfered with the couple's "good and loving marriage". The judge rejected Sinema's argument that she lacks a meaningful connection to North Carolina, citing nine messages sent between Sinema and Ammel that were discovered by Heather Ammel while she was in the state. The lawsuit can now move forward, with Heather Ammel seeking damages from Sinema under North Carolina law that recognizes alienation-of-affection claims.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event.
Claims extracted
16
claim-shaped sentences
Uncertain
31%
5 of 16 hedged
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher trust
94.3
red-flag proxy, not a credibility rating
Outlets on this story
unclustered
not grouped into a story yet
Narrative spread
1
articles carrying this framing
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.35, but none of the 2 quote(s) it offered could be found in the article text, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 4883: no verified evidence · logged 2026-09-05
Former U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema can be sued under North Carolina's so-called "homewrecker" law after a federal judge ruled the state has jurisdiction over allegations she helped break up a marriage by having an affair with a woman's then-husband.
asserted
she → sue → husband
Sinema acknowledged having a sexual relationship with Matthew Ammel, who was a member of her security detail while she was a senator, but said she could not be sued in North Carolina because she lacks a meaningful connection to the state.
U.S. District Judge David A. Bragdon rejected that argument and denied Sinema's motion to dismiss the case, saying she knew Ammel lived in the state with his wife, Heather Ammel, and their three children.
Bragdon also pointed out that Heather Ammel discovered the affair in early 2024 after reading nine messages Sinema sent to her then-husband while he was in North Carolina.
uncertain
he → acknowledge → Carolina
He found that those communications were enough for Heather Ammel's lawsuit to move forward in the state.
asserted
lawsuit → find → state
In her civil complaint, Heather Ammel is seeking damages from Sinema, claiming the ex-lawmaker interfered with what she described as a "good and loving marriage" by pursuing her then-husband.
asserted
she → seek → husband
North Carolina is among the few states that recognize alienation-of-affection claims, allowing spouses to seek damages from a third party they believe caused the breakdown of their marriage.
uncertain
they → recognize → marriage
Sinema's lawyers, Steven Epstein and Abigail Jenkins, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
asserted
lawyers → respond → comment
In his ruling, the judge found that the messages between the two affair partners showed Sinema was "furthering a romantic relationship" with Ammel and "invading" his marriage both while she went on trips with him and when he was home.
asserted
he → find → him
According to Heather Ammel's lawsuit, her husband joined Sinema's security team in 2022 after retiring from the U.S. Army.
uncertain
husband → accord → Army
He then began traveling with her domestically and internationally.
asserted
He → begin → her
Sinema, who is unmarried, said in a July 31 deposition that she first had sex with Ammel around Memorial Day 2024.
asserted
she → say → Day
"We were staying at an Airbnb in Napa, California.
asserted
We → stay → Napa
Matt kissed me.
asserted
Matt → kiss → me
We went inside and had sex," Sinema said in her deposition, which took place at a law office in Raleigh.
asserted
which → go → Raleigh
That summer, Ammel stopped wearing his wedding ring and was given a job as a national security fellow in Sinema's Senate office, according to Heather Ammel's lawsuit.
uncertain
Ammel → stop → lawsuit
Sinema, who represented Arizona in the U.S. House and later in the Senate, said in her deposition she had sexual encounters with Ammel in New York, Washington, Colorado and Arizona, but never North Carolina.
asserted
she → represent → York
The Ammels separated on Nov. 1, 2024, and their divorce was finalized in March 2026, according to court records.
uncertain
divorce → separate → records
