Former pardon attorney sues DoJ over ‘unlawful’ firing tied to Mel Gibson case

A former Justice Department pardon attorney, Liz Oyer, filed a lawsuit on Thursday alleging she was unlawfully fired due to her refusal to recommend the restoration of actor Mel Gibson's gun rights. Oyer claims she was let go in March 2025 after declining a request from the staff of then-Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche to include Gibson in a list of individuals the Justice Department would advocate for reinstating their gun rights.

Oyer's objection was rooted in public safety concerns, given Gibson's prior domestic violence conviction which had previously stripped him of his gun privileges. Blanche denied Oyer's account, stating in his recent Senate confirmation hearing for Attorney General, that he was unaware of Gibson or the letter when he terminated her.

Oyer's lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, seeks a declaration that her termination was unlawful and seeks reinstatement in federal service. The lawsuit is part of a series by Justice Department staff challenging terminations under the Trump administration as unlawful. Oyer asserts that her firing is not just a personal matter but a broader issue about civil servants' ability to uphold the law without fear or favor.

She warns that if career officials are fired for refusing to bend the rules to serve the president's friends, the message to every public servant will be that loyalty to a politician supersedes loyalty to the Constitution.