California's Treasurer Fiona Ma now has a sizable legal defense fund.
Ma faces sexual harassment and a wrongful termination lawsuit filed by Judith Blackwell. Blackwell alleges Ma made unwanted sexual advances when the two shared a hotel room on a business trip and was fired for rejecting her. Legal experts say since Ma is being sued as a private and public individual, it's reasonable for her to get money from private donors. She has currently raised $50,000, $20,000 of which came from two real estate developers in Rancho Cucamonga.
“The allegations in this desperate and meritless lawsuit are being made against me in both my individual and official capacities, so it is entirely reasonable, and should be expected, that I would retain outside counsel as well as being represented by the Attorney General,” she wrote in a statement. The top donors to her legal fund include Rancho Cucamonga developers Jeffrey Burum and Reggie King, who each gave $10,000, according to contribution reports filed with the state.