Kyrsten Sinema is facing a civil fight tied to North Carolina’s alienation-of-affection law, with a federal judge saying the case can keep moving. The dispute centers on claims that her relationship with a married member of her security detail helped blow up a marriage and left a trail of messages, travel, and hard feelings behind.
The ruling gives Heather Ammel the green light to pursue damages in North Carolina, where her lawsuit says Sinema interfered with a “good and loving marriage” by pursuing her husband, Matthew Ammel. Sinema had argued that the state had no real pull over her, but the court saw enough connection to keep the case alive.
U.S. District Judge David A. Bragdon said Sinema knew Matthew Ammel lived in North Carolina with his wife and their three children. He also pointed to messages Heather Ammel found in early 2024, saying the communications were enough to support the claim that Sinema was reaching into a marriage that was already anchored in the state.
The lawsuit says Matthew Ammel joined Sinema’s security team in 2022 after leaving the U.S. Army, then started traveling with her inside the country and overseas. By Heather Ammel’s account, the relationship crossed from workplace proximity into something far more personal, and the fallout hit the family hard.
Sinema has already acknowledged having a sexual relationship with Matthew Ammel, though she has pushed back on the idea that she can be sued in North Carolina. In a July 31 deposition, she said the first sexual encounter happened around Memorial Day 2024, while the two were staying at an Airbnb in Napa, California.
According to the deposition, Sinema said, “We were staying at an Airbnb in Napa, California. We were outside. Matt kissed me. We went inside and had sex,” Sinema said in her deposition, which took place at a law office in Raleigh. That detail matters because the case is less about whether the relationship happened and more about where the legal fight can be heard.
North Carolina is one of the few states that still recognizes alienation-of-affection claims, a throwback law that lets a spouse seek money from a third party accused of causing a marriage to fall apart. It is controversial, but it remains on the books, and cases like this show it is not just a relic sitting quietly in the corner.
Bragdon said the messages between Sinema and Ammel suggested she was “furthering a romantic relationship” with him and “invading” his marriage, including while he was traveling and even when he was home. That language gave the complaint enough traction to survive the dismissal attempt and keep the pressure squarely on Sinema.
Heather Ammel’s filing also says the affair did not stay hidden for long once she reviewed the messages. The lawsuit claims Sinema and Matthew Ammel exchanged nine messages while he was in North Carolina, and that those communications helped expose what was going on.
The complaint says the damage was not just emotional, but deeply personal, with the marriage unraveling after the relationship came to light. The couple separated on Nov. 1, 2024, and their divorce was finalized in March 2026, according to court records.
Sinema, who represented Arizona in both the House and the Senate, is no longer in office but remains a headline magnet for legal and political reasons. Her lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment, which leaves the case to keep unfolding in court rather than in a public defense statement.
For now, the judge’s ruling keeps the spotlight on how far a state can reach when a relationship starts somewhere else but lands with consequences at home. It also keeps the Ammels’ marriage, the messages, and the travel in the center of a case that is still very much alive.
