Ex-Defender Faces Skeptical Judges in Seeking Case’s Revival

An appeals court seemed skeptical of a former federal public defender’s challenge to the judiciary’s procedures for handling misconduct complaints.

Caryn Strickland, who alleged that she was harassed by her supervisor at the Western District of North Carolina’s federal defender’s office, argued to the court on Monday that her case involves the right of other judiciary employees to be in a workplace free from harassment.

The case was filed at the US District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. The appeal was housed within the US Court of Appeals for Fourth Circuit, but was heard by a panel ...