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Four senior Idaho Attorney General staffers resign as shakeups in AG’s office continue

Attorney General Raúl Labrador waves to the crowd after being sworn in for office by Idaho Chief Justice G. Richard Bevan on the steps of the Idaho Capitol on Jan. 6. Less than a year into Labrador’s first term, several high-ranking officials have resigned from the office. (Sarah A. Miller/Idaho Statesman)
By Kyle Pfannenstiel Idaho Capital Sun

Four senior Idaho Attorney General staffers are leaving the office, according to an office email and other local news reports.

Idaho Solicitor General Theo Wold and Raul Labrador’s chief of staff, Tim Frost, are leaving the office, Idaho Attorney General Labrador wrote in an email, obtained by the Idaho Capital Sun. Lincoln Davis Wilson, chief of the Civil and Constitutional Defense Division, is also resigning, reported the Idaho Statesman, which first reported on the departures. The office’s communications director, Beth Cahill, also is leaving, the Idaho Press reported.

“I hired some of the most talented people in the state of Idaho,” Labrador said in an interview Friday with the Idaho Press, “and they are very successful, highly ambitious and they’re very coveted.”

Labrador told the Idaho Press that the exits are happening for unrelated reasons.

Wilson declined to comment to the Idaho Capital Sun. Wilson was named for the position on Feb. 13, according to a press release.

The Idaho Attorney General’s Office could not be reached for comment.

More turnover

A fired deputy attorney general last month filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against the Attorney General’s Office, alleging retaliation after raising ethical concerns, the Idaho Capital Sun previously reported.

Frost began at the Attorney General’s Office as chief of staff in May, according to his LinkedIn. He previously worked as deputy administrator for the Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses, his profile said. Frost’s last day is Oct. 14, Labrador’s email said. The email did not say where Frost would work.

Wold, whose last day was Friday, will train as a commissioned intelligence officer in the U.S. Air Force Reserves, Labrador said in the email.

“Theo’s grandfather survived the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor and served in the Pacific Theater thereafter. His grandfather’s lifelong example greatly influenced Theo in deciding to serve,” Labrador wrote. “Although Theo is departing services with the Attorney General’s Office, he will continue to serve his country.”

Wold, a Boise resident who was the first to fill the role of Idaho solicitor general in many years, was acting assistant general in the U.S. Department of Justice and a deputy assistant to former President Donald Trump. He also served as deputy chief counsel to U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. Wold, whose hiring was announced last November, began his role with the attorney general’s office on Jan. 2, the Idaho Capital Sun previously reported.

Deputy Solicitor Josh Turner will serve as interim solicitor general while the office searches for a replacement, the email said.

Deputy Attorney General Phil Skinner will serve as chief of staff, the email said.

Skinner previously was lead deputy attorney at the tax commission, the email said.

Six of eight top attorneys assigned to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare quit or were fired by Labrador since March.

Labrador at the time argued that the departures were an isolated purge of personnel who weren’t the best candidates for those jobs under his administration.

“What should be telling is that, in every other division, we haven’t had this issue, so that tells you that the problem is not with that office or with my leadership, but it’s with the culture in that division,” Labrador said in an interview at the time. “In fact, many of these divisions are very excited about the changes that are happening.”

Idaho Capital Sun is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Idaho Capital Sun maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Christina Lords for questions: info@idahocapitalsun.com. Follow Idaho Capital Sun on Facebook and Twitter.