Four of the suspended leaders of Local S6 at Bath Iron Works have filed suit in federal court against the international union and some of its officers, claiming they were improperly ousted from their posts.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers placed the 3,400-member local into trusteeship this past March because of accusations that included financial improprieties and pornography on computers.

Among the local leaders suspended were president Michael Keenan, vice president Troy Osgood, chief steward Michael Cyr and trustee Cathy London. The four are plaintiffs in the suit, which claims violations of federal labor laws, as well as defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress under state laws. The suit was filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Portland.

The union last month held three days of hearings aimed at sorting out the status of S6. The three-member panel that heard testimony had 60 days from April 17 to reach a conclusion about Local S6 and its leadership.

The panel will make a recommendation to international president R. Thomas Buffenbarger as to whether to continue the trusteeship and seek new local leaders or dissolve it. Buffenbarger was one of several officers named in the lawsuit.