Agency moves to dismiss a judge who rejected a Trump Directive

The Commission for the same employment opportunities tries to dismiss the administrative judge, which became a symbol of resistance after it triggered a guideline of the Trump administration for the agency in order to pause its discrimination investigations with regard to transgender people.

The judge Karen Ortiz received a termination on Wednesday that she was transferred to the paid administrative leave until the procedure was removed from the position that she has been holding for more than six years. The Commission enforces laws against discrimination based on employment relationships in the federal government and in the private sector.

In letters checked by the New York Times, the superior of Ms. Ortiz, Arlean Nieto, the director of the Head of the Office of New York District Office, said they terminate Ms. Ortiz in order not to follow “the agency's e -mail directive.

Ms. Ortiz became nationally aware of in February when someone passed her e -mail to the commission's acting chairman, Andrea Lucas, and asked her to step down. Ms. Ortiz accused Ms. Lucas to follow the “illegal and unethical orders of our president” and to violate the constitution.

“I will not endanger my ethics and my duty to maintain the law,” wrote Ms. Ortiz in the e -mail, which she copied in about 1,000 of her colleagues. She admitted that she made a goal for the administration.

The e -mail became viral among those who searched for signs of resistance to the deep cuts of the Trump government with the federal government and the goal of marginalized groups.

The agency has eliminated Ms. Ortiz's email access and sent her a letter of reference that warn that she had violated the agency's guidelines that are approved by the all-employees emails sent to other offices by the office director in advance.

In response, Ms. Ortiz sent more e -mails in which Ms. Lucas had resigned, and accused her of the misconduct, including one that asked Ms. Lucas, about what she allowed herself to be part and then with a video of The Tears for Fear's song, “everyone wants to rule the world”. The content of the e -mails, wrote Ms. Nieto, was “deeply unprofessional”.

The Commission for the same employment opportunities sent Ms. Ortiz the letters a few weeks after President Trump, if not in particular, mentioned it in an order of the executive on April 18, which made it easier to dismiss government employees that “opposed the presidential policy”.

The Commission rejected e -mail to comment. Ms. Ortiz has 15 days to respond to the allegations. She said that she intends to fight, but does not regret it.

“These are literally charged,” she said. “I stand behind my actions that support the rule of law and the trans community.”