Former Arizona Democratic Senator Kyrsten Sinema will share testimony this month about her affair with a married bodyguard after his ex-wife sued her.
The relationship is laid out in court documents filed in the so-called ‘homewrecker’ lawsuit filed by Heather Ammel, who accuses Sinema of ‘deliberate’ interference in ending her nearly 15-year marriage to Matthew Ammel, the father of her three children.
The shock development could tee up a made-for-TV moment since she is expected to appear in person. She could also opt to provide a pre-recorded deposition, or written testimony, in the explosive case.
But Sinema, who is known for her bold and bright fashion choices, isn’t one to shy away from the limelight.
Heather Ammel sued Sinema last year for acting with ‘deliberate’ and ‘malicious’ interference to seduce her husband. She is seeking damages from Sinema in excess of $25,000 as a direct result of the harm, as well as punitive damages.
But should the lawsuit proceed, Sinema could be on the hook for a much bigger payout. That’s because her former security guard-turned-lover had been living in North Carolina at the time.
The Tar Heel state is one of just six in the US that still allows spouses to sue in certain cases of infidelity – a 19th century relic, but one that often finds sympathy from jurors.
Recent lawsuits brought in the state under the ‘Alienation of Affection’ tort have yielded eye-popping payouts – many of them into the millions- as jurors heaped sympathy and dollar signs in the form of compensatory and punitive damages.
‘I keep waking up during my sleep and reaching over for your arms to hold me,’ Sinema told Ammel in 2024, according to the complaint – around the same time Matthew Ammel allegedly stopped wearing his wedding ring. ‘
The Democratic-turned-independent politician was sued for ‘alienation of affection’ by the ex-wife of her former bodyguard
Matthew Ammel in a family photo with what appears to be his young son
Are you having an affair with my husband?’ Heather responded, according to the complaint. ‘You took a married man away from his family,’ she added.
The lawsuit and filings reveal a comprehensive timeline of their relationship and affair, which Sinema acknowledged included dalliances in several US states, and trips to Sonoma County and Miami, where they attended a Taylor Swift concert with Ammel’s children, and Heather, in tow.
On one occasion, Sinema offered to ‘work on’ Ammel’s back with a Theragun. On another, she allegedly suggested he bring MDMA on a work trip, where she offered to ‘guide him through a psychedelic experience’ – though Sinema denied those instances.
‘I keep waking up during my sleep and reaching over for your arms to hold me,’ Sinema wrote to Ammel on Signal in June 2024 – around the time he allegedly stopped wearing his wedding ring.
The affair ran for months across phone calls, emails and Signal messages, with meetings in several states, according to court documents.
Sinema’s lawyers have not denied the affair took place. Instead, the dispute centers on whether the affair took place in the state of North Carolina.
A unique North Carolina law allows for a plaintiff to sue for alienation of affection via ‘wrongful and malicious conduct’, for example, an affair.
Former senator Kyrsten Sinema watches Matthew Ammel, her former bodyguard, with whom she had an affair, testify before the Arizona legislature in February 2024. They first became intimate in May of that year
Sinema walks to meet Senator Chuck Schumer in the US Senate
Sinema speaks to colleagues in the US Senate
Sinema speaks at the US capitol
Heather Ammel’s lawyers argued that enough communication took place while he was physically in North Carolina.
She said in a written declaration that she was at their ‘marital residence’ when Sinema ‘sent a photo of herself wrapped in a towel.’ ‘I was standing in our kitchen when I read the message,’ she said.
In order to succeed, plaintiffs suing under the law must satisfy a difficult burden of proof. First, they must show that their marriage had ‘real affection’ and a viable relationship before any third-party involvement.
Second, they must demonstrate that the ‘love and affection’ in their marriage was destroyed, or significantly diminished; and finally, that the defendant in question directly ’caused the destruction of that marital love and affection.’
The complaint against Sinema accused her of engaging in ‘intentional and malicious interference’ in Ammel’s marriage and sought $25,000 in damages from Sinema as a result of the allegedly ‘willful and wanton’ conduct, as well as punitive damages.
In 2010, a jury in North Carolina awarded plaintiff Cynthia Shackelford a total of $9 million in compensatory and punitive damages for an alienation of affection lawsuit against the husband’s alleged mistress.
More recently, 2018, a Durham County judge ordered some $8.8 million in damages be paid out to BMX show owner Keith King from the man King accused of stealing his wife – and ruining his company.
Neither Sinema nor her lawyers responded to the Daily Mail’s request for comment.
