Former Sen. Kyrsten Sinema faces alienation of affection lawsuit in North Carolina

A former U.S. senator is the target of an alienation-of-affection lawsuit filed in North Carolina, one of the few states that still permits such claims.

Heather Ammel filed the complaint in Moore County Superior Court against former Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema. The suit alleges that Sinema knowingly pursued Ammel’s husband, Matthew Ammel, a married bodyguard with children.

According to the complaint, Sinema sent Matthew Ammel romantic and explicit Signal messages, gave him gifts and invited him on trips to Napa Valley and New York. It also claims Sinema suggested he bring MDMA on a work trip so she could guide him through a psychedelic experience.

University of Virginia sociologist Brad Wilcox told Fox News Digital that the case highlights a remaining American norm. “One of the few norms that Americans still embrace across the spectrum is the norm of fidelity,” he said.

Wilcox said North Carolina’s law reflects the view that marriage vows still matter even amid widespread celebrity scandals and social-media affairs. “These laws are designed to reinforce the marital bond and secure the importance of fidelity in marriage,” he said.

North Carolina is among a small number of states that allow a spouse to sue a third party for interfering with a marriage. Plaintiffs can seek large financial damages, and juries have awarded millions in some cases.

Critics call the suits outdated. Supporters say they recognize the emotional and financial harm infidelity can cause beyond the couple. “What people fail to see is the way what happens in our marriages affects adults, kids and communities,” Wilcox said.

He cited research showing children of divorced parents are about half as likely to graduate from college and are more likely to struggle with depression. Boys are also more likely to end up in prison or jail, he said.

Family-law attorney Charles R. Ullman, who has handled many such cases, said the suits give betrayed spouses a form of accountability they otherwise lack. “It’s one of the few ways that people feel like they get some type of relief,” Ullman said. “If you don’t have this lawsuit, you don’t have a remedy for someone being the ‘homewrecker.’”

Ullman noted that family courts do not award money for an affair itself, but the suits allow recovery from the third party when that person caused measurable damage. He compared them to other civil claims that let people recover losses caused by another’s conduct.

Ullman said modern technology has changed how affairs begin and how they are proved. Encrypted apps, disappearing messages and social-media contact now appear regularly in these cases. He added that many involve people reconnecting with high-school sweethearts online.

North Carolina also recognizes a related claim called criminal conversation, which focuses on the loss of an exclusive sexual relationship rather than emotional alienation.

Both Ullman and Wilcox said the continued use of these suits shows that many North Carolinians still see marriage as worth legal protection. “One of the strongest predictors of adult happiness in America today for both men and women is a good marriage,” Wilcox said. “Infidelity is a dagger in the heart of marriage.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Sinema, her legal team and attorneys for Heather Ammel for comment.