Toural's American husband of less than five months, Jereleigh "Seddik" Morton, 47, had been shot to death. His U.S.-born Muslim first wife, Myra Morton, was charged. And Myra, whom Toural called "a sister and a friend," had secretly told U.S. officials Toural had ties to terrorist groups and should not be let into the United States.

Yesterday, in a suit that raises a legion of legal tangles, Toural, 36, sued her U.S. rival for defaming her and ruining her reputation in the United States and Morocco.

The suit seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages from Myra Morton, 47, who is in prison awaiting trial in the August murder of her husband in their Montgomery County home.

The lawsuit contends that Morton sent a "poison pen letter" to the U.S. State Department "to blacken the character of [Toural], prevent her from being able to enter the United States, expose her to harm for being perceived as a terrorist . . . and allow an investigative file to be opened . . . regarding her alleged criminal involvement."

Jack Meyerson, a Center City lawyer who with partner Emily L. Mirsky filed the lawsuit on Toural's behalf, said the impact of rumored terrorist ties could have dire consequences for a woman in a Muslim country.

"If this were to be believed in Morocco, she could be put to death," Meyerson said.

"The magnitude of her damages is going to depend on what the State Department did with this information," Meyerson added.

Although unusual, lawsuits between U.S. and foreign citizens in the U.S. courts are not unprecedented.

The murder and two marriages also raise complex issues involving family and estate law, Meyerson said.

For example, both of Morton's marriages are recognized by Morocco, but in the United States, polygamy is illegal.

Moreover, under Pennsylvania law, Myra Morton, if convicted, would be barred from inheriting her husband's multimillion-dollar estate.

And though the Mortons' daughter and granddaughter could be heirs, so, arguably, could Toural.

"We do intend to pursuit this in Orphans Court in Montgomery County," Meyerson said, referring to the estate questions.

Morton secretly sent her letter to U.S. officials on April 20, less than a month after her husband's and Toural's marriage contract was filed in court in Rabat, Morocco.

Two days after Jereleigh Morton's Aug. 5 murder, the lawsuit reads, a State Department agent showed a Montgomery County detective his "open investigative file" initiated by Morton's letter.

The letter and related information became part of the affidavit of probable cause to arrest Myra Morton. It was published by the Montgomery County District Attorney's office in its official news release and picked up and published internationally by news media.

The federal lawsuit is the latest chapter in the strange tale of the life and death of Morton, a North Philadelphia handyman-turned-millionaire, and his two wives.

Morton was shot to death in his sleep hours before he was supposed to fly to Morocco to impregnate Toural.

Myra Morton is awaiting trial, and at a hearing last month defense attorney Brian J. McMonagle said he hoped to reach a plea agreement.

McMonagle declined to comment on the federal defamation lawsuit except to add, "It's certainly the least of her problems."

The Mortons, Muslim converts, had been married for 25 years, and Myra Morton was the mother of their two children.

One of the Mortons' daughters died after an accident, and a reported $8 million settlement of their medical malpractice case in 2005 enabled him to retire from his job as a North Philadelphia handyman and move to a Whitpain Township mansion.

The Mortons' other daughter is 18 and a mother herself, but Myra Morton was no longer able to bear children.

Although Myra Morton consented to her husband's second marriage to Toural so he could try for a son and visit Toural in Morocco, court documents say she privately complained about her situation and became increasingly desperate as her husband's Aug. 5 trip to Morocco neared.