OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Humane Society of the United States is suing Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt over an investigation into the organization's fundraising.
The head of the attorney general's Public Protection Unit calls the lawsuit unwarranted.
The Humane Society says documents sought by Pruitt's office are privileged and that Pruitt has conducted a "nearly yearlong campaign of political harassment and public vilification." The lawsuit filed in Oklahoma County asks for an injunction to stop efforts to obtain the documents. The lawsuit was filed by former Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson.
Pruitt's office says the organization's requests for donations may be misleading Oklahomans who think donations go to local animal shelters, but instead are used for lobbying and special interest campaigns to influence state and federal laws.
Public Protection Unit Chief Julie Bays says the Humane Society is waging "a duplicitous war of misinformation."