‘When They See Us’ Real-Life Prosecutor Linda Fairstein Is Suing Ava DuVernay And Netflix–Says Her Career Was Destroyed

Of all the things going on right now, Exonerated 5 prosecutor Linda Fairstein thought it was the appropriate time to hit Ava DuVernay and Netflix with a lawsuit for her portrayal in “When They See Us.”

Fairstein filed the federal suit today, saying she warned Ava about it before the limited series was released on Netflix. Fairstein claims she told Ava about her concerns of being portrayed in a false and defamatory manner.

Ava allegedly said Fairstein had no right to object before seeing the series. Once the critically acclaimed series actually dropped, Fairstein says every episode in which she appeared portrayed her as a “racist, unethical villain who is determined to jail innocent children of color at any cost.”

In the suit, which was obtained by TMZ, Fairstein objects to how the case was portrayed in the series, denying that she unlawfully interrogated unaccompanied minors. She also denies calling for a roundup of “young black” thugs as well as manipulating the timeline to pin the jogger’s rape on the five young men who were arrested.

In other words, Fairstein claims her whole role was a lie and she paid for it. She claims after “When They See Us” was released, her career as a prolific crime author was destroyed.

In case you all forgot, Fairstein faced a lot of fallout after the series. Her publisher and agents dropped her, she lost speaking appearances and she was forced to resign from the boards of several nonprofit organizations.

Fairstein is suing Netflix, DuVernay and her co-writer, Attica Locke, for defamation. She’s also demanding a public apology, removal of the scenes she calls false, and a disclaimer added that labels the series as a dramatization and NOT a true story. 

A rep for Netflix told TMZ, “Linda Fairstein’s frivolous lawsuit is without merit. We intend to vigorously defend When They See Us and Ava DuVernay and Attica Locke, the incredible team behind the series.”

We’ll keep you posted on any updates.