Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee to step down as CBC Foundation chair amid lawsuit Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) is stepping down from her role as the chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation board amid a lawsuit from a former staffer. The ex-staffer accused Jackson Lee of improperly firing her as retaliation over claims she was sexually assaulted by a supervisor at the foundation years earlier. The New York Times reported Jackson Lee’s departure on Wednesday, also adding that the lawmaker will temporarily step down from her chairmanship on the House Judiciary Committee’s crime, terrorism, homeland security and investigations subcommittee. An anonymous Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF) official told the Times that the group’s board told Jackson Lee that they could vote to remove her if she did not step down voluntarily. A congressional source familiar with the matter confirmed to The Hill that after news of the lawsuit came out, she began to face growing "pressure," both inside and outside of the CBC. In the case of the House Judiciary Committee, she ultimately chose to step aside until a ruling on the case is wrapped up. In the lawsuit, filed earlier this month, the staffer (“Jane Doe” in the claim) alleges that she was raped in October 2015 by Damien Jones, a former intern coordinator for the foundation. She did not pursue legal action at the time, but decided to do so last year while working in Jackson Lee’s congressional office. Jane Doe claims that she was fired after telling Jackson Lee’s chief of staff of her plans to take legal action against the CBCF. She claims that she asked for a meeting with Jackson Lee to discuss her plan, but says she was not granted a meeting and was fired weeks later. Jackson Lee’s chief of staff said at the time: “We had nothing to do with any of the actions that have been cited and the person was not wrongfully terminated.” “The congresswoman is confident that, once all of the facts come to light, her office will be exonerated of any retaliatory or otherwise improper conduct and this matter will be put to rest,” the lawmaker’s office said in a statement, according to the Times. https://thehill.com/homenews/house/426616-jackson-lee-to-step-down-as-cbc-foundation-chairwoman-amid-lawsuit-from-ex