Solano DA Krishna Abrams fires prosecutor Sharon Henry

Solano County District Attorney Krishna Abrams has fired a deputy prosecutor who filed a discrimination lawsuit against her last year.

The firing of chief deputy prosecutor Sharon Henry came less than one month after the election in which the deputy district attorney ran against her boss months after filing a discrimination lawsuit against her.

Solano NewsNet was the first to report details of the discrimination lawsuit filed by Henry last August, which alleged ageism and retaliation by Solano County’s top prosecutor. The case is still pending in federal court, with a hearing set by a magistrate judge to review a request by Solano County to dismiss it.

In February, Henry announced she would run against Abrams for the position of District Attorney. She won the endorsement of several active and retired litigators, while Abrams was endorsed by local lawmakers and police unions.

Election results were certified last Thursday. Abrams retained her position with 60 percent of ballots cast in her favor. One day later, she fired Henry.

Neither the District Attorney’s office nor Henry’s lawyer, Sarah Nichols, have returned requests for comment. In an interview with the Vallejo Times-Herald, Nichols said the firing was “a surprise, and I think it’s continuing the discrimination that [Henry] has experienced for a while.”

“She just wants to do her job,” Nichols said.

The discrimination lawsuit against Abrams is not the first time a subordinate has sued the county over discrimination within the prosecutor’s office.

In 2017 and 2018, two former deputy prosecutors sued Abrams over similar retaliation and discrimination claims, netting settlements of over $775,000. Henry was named as a co-defendant in both cases, according to court records reviewed by Solano NewsNet.

In a news media interview, a spokesperson for the district attorney’s office said they disagreed with the settlements, but the matter was out of their hands because the money was ultimately approved by county officials in order to settle the cases.