Four former top public defenders are suing the state after they were ousted earlier this year , a decision they say was motivated by "personal animosity."

The lawsuit, filed Friday in East Baton Rouge Parish, alleges State Public Defender Rémy Starns pushed out the public defenders in retaliation after they opposed his efforts to seize more control over Louisiana's public defense system.

Starns, the office of the state public defender, and the Louisiana Public Defender Board, which sided with Starns in July in a dispute over the defenders' jobs, are named as defendants in the lawsuit.

The plaintiffs include Trisha Ward, Brett Brunson, John Hogue and Michelle AndrePont. They have argued state law should have protected them from Starns' decision in February not to renew their contracts,

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