Nessel's chief deputy Hammoud to leave Attorney General's office next month

Attorney General Dana Nessel's chief deputy who led an unsuccessful prosecution of defendants in the Flint water crisis is stepping down from her post next month.

Chief Deputy Attorney General Fadwa Hammoud is resigning effective March 8, Nessel's office confirmed Wednesday. She's leaving to join a private law firm.

Hammoud served as solicitor general under Nessel for four years before she moved in December 2022 to the position of chief deputy.

In an email to staff Wednesday, Nessel said Hammoud had decided to pursue a career in the private sector.

"I am sorry to see Fadwa go," Nessel said. "She has been a good friend and colleague for many years. ...Fadwa will be missed by us all, and I wish her well in her new endeavor."

Hammoud is taking up a role as managing member of Miller Johnson's Detroit office, where she'll help advise the firm's strategic direction and serve "as a primary conduit to legislative and judicial personnel at the state and federal level," the firm said in a statement Thursday.

“This is an incredible opportunity for me personally and professionally, as I aim to increase the impact I am able to have in the communities I have served throughout my career through the kind of direct access the world of private practice provides,” Hammoud said in the statement.

Hammoud was the first Arab American solicitor general in the country and became the first Arab American woman in the country to argue before the U.S. Supreme Court when she appeared before the High Court on behalf of the department.

Hammoud previously worked in the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office and was a trustee for the Dearborn Public Schools Board of Education.

Working alongside Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, Hammoud led the Flint water crisis investigation and prosecution on behalf of Nessel's office.

The effort ended with no convictions after the Michigan Supreme Court found the means used to charge the defendants in the case was not valid.

eleblanc@detroitnews.com