Woman accused of spitting on a top federal prosecutor is arrested on an assault charge

WASHINGTON (AP) — A woman accused of spitting on the top federal prosecutor for the nation’s capital was arrested Thursday on a federal assault charge, court records show.

Then-acting U.S. Attorney Ed Martin Jr. was being interviewed on video by a Newsmax reporter on a sidewalk outside his office on May 8 when Emily Gabriella Sommer approached him and spit on his left shoulder, a deputy U.S. Marshal’s affidavit says.

Video captured Sommer swearing at Martin, calling him “a disgusting man” and yelling, “My name is Emily Gabriella Sommer, and you are served,” before walking away, the affidavit says.

The encounter occurred on the same day that President Donald Trump pulled Martin’s nomination to remain U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia on a more permanent basis.

Former Fox News host Jeanine Pirro replaced Martin, who faced bipartisan opposition in the Senate after a turbulent stint in the nation’s largest U.S. Attorney’s office. A key Republican senator said he could not support Martin for the job due to his defense of rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol more than four years ago. Martin roiled the office with a series of unorthodox moves, such as firing and demoting subordinates who worked on politically sensitive cases.

Sommer later took credit for the spitting incident in a message replying to a social media post by Martin, according to the deputy.

Sommer was arrested in Washington, D.C., on a complaint charging her with assaulting, resisting or impeding a government official. Online court records don’t list an attorney for her.

Pirro’s name — not Martin’s — is on the signature block for a court filing in Sommer’s case.