In several motions filed on Friday, former GOP State Sen. Justin Eichorn asked a federal judge to dismiss an indictment against him for attempting to entice a minor.

Eichorn was arrested and charged federally as part of an undercover child prostitution sting. He resigned on March 20, just before the Senate was poised to vote on his expulsion.

The motion states that the decision to federally charge Eichorn was “vindictively motivated by personal animus against [him]” due to his position as an elected official.

Eichorn and 13 others were arrested in a sex sting in Bloomington in March and charges were referred to the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office. State charges against Eichorn and a few other men from the Bloomington sting were dismissed when they were federally indicted.

Friday’s motion points to a similar sex sting in Washington County, a few days after the Bloomington sting, and states that none of the Washington County defendants have been charged in federal court. The document also claims that Eichorn would have likely gotten probation for the Hennepin County charge due to his lack of a criminal record.

After Eichorn was federally indicted, the U.S. Attorney’s Office stated in a news release that it “has no tolerance for public officials who violate federal law — particularly those laws meant to protect children.”

The motion claims that the federal charge against Eichorn was “motivated solely” by the fact that he would get a more significant sentence than in the Hennepin County case.

In other recent motions, Eichorn claims he was not advised of his Miranda rights before his interrogation and that his person and vehicle were illegally searched. He asked a judge to suppress the evidence found in the searches.

You can find KSTP’s full coverage of the case HERE.