Jill Kelley, a friend of Gen. David Petraeus who was reportedly harassed over e-mail by his mistress Paula Broadwell, has lawyered up.
Kelley, who lives in Floria, hired bigwig Washington, D.C. lawyer Abbe Lowell and high-powered crisis management expert, Judy Smith, according to USA Today.
It is unclear why Kelley hired representation. Calls to Lowell’s office were not immediately returned.
Lowell was part Chief Minority Counsel to the Democrats in the House of Representatives during President Bill Clinton’s impeachment over the Monica Lewinsky scandal. He has represented John Edwards, Gary Condit and Jack Abramoff, among others, according to his bio on his law firm — Chadbourne & Park LLP’s — website.
Before her work in crisis management, Smith served as as Deputy Press Secretary to George H.W. Bush. She then went on to work with high-profile clients such as Monica Lewinsky and NFL player Michael Vick, according to her website.
Smith is also the inspiration for popular ABC series “Scandal” about, well, scandalous goings-on in Washington. She is a co-executive producer of the series.
Gen. David Petraeus resigned from his post as CIA director Friday reportedly due to an extramarital affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell.
The FBI apparently stumbled across the affair during a routine investigation after Kelley complained to law enforcement that she was receiving harassing e-mails.
Kelley issued a statement Sunday: “We and our family have been friends with General Petraeus and his family for over 5 years. We respect his and his family’s privacy and want the same for us and our three children.”