Donald Trump fired Seattle’s newly appointed U.S. attorney less than an hour after he took the job.
Now a federal judge has ordered the president to put him back.
Roger Rogoff was unanimously appointed in July by the federal judges of the Western District of Washington after the district’s previous interim U.S. attorney, Charles Neil Floyd, reached the end of his temporary term without a Senate-confirmed replacement.
Rogoff, a former judge and veteran prosecutor, took the oath of office on July 15.
He barely had time to settle in.
Less than an hour after being sworn in, Rogoff received an email informing him that the Trump administration had fired him. He subsequently sued, arguing that the president did not have the authority to remove a U.S. attorney who had been appointed by the federal district court.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Stanley Bastian sided with Rogoff.
Bastian ruled that the termination was unlawful and ordered Rogoff reinstated as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington.
The judge pointed to federal law governing vacancies in U.S. attorney positions. When there is no Senate-confirmed nominee, the law allows the district’s judges to appoint someone to serve until the vacancy is filled.
In other words, Bastian concluded that the law does not give the president unilateral authority to simply fire the court-appointed prosecutor.
“Mr. Roger Rogoff is the United States attorney for the Western District of Washington,” Bastian said, adding that Rogoff has been the rightful holder of the office since taking the oath on July 15.
The ruling represents the latest clash between the Trump administration and federal judges over who has the authority to occupy powerful U.S. attorney positions.
And Rogoff’s case is particularly notable because he is believed to be the first court-appointed U.S. attorney removed by the administration to challenge his firing in court — giving the judiciary a direct opportunity to weigh in on the president’s authority to remove such prosecutors.
The administration has argued that the president does have the authority to remove court-appointed U.S. attorneys.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche previously said that district judges could appoint a temporary U.S. attorney but that the president could fire that person. The Justice Department maintained that position after Rogoff’s lawsuit.
The department is now preparing to appeal Bastian’s ruling.
“We disagree with the decision and intend to seek an immediate stay and will appeal,” the Justice Department said.
The Seattle dispute is part of a broader fight over the Justice Department’s control of federal prosecutors.
Similar battles have erupted in New Jersey, Virginia and New York, where the Trump administration has also sought to remove or replace prosecutors appointed through judicial processes. In one case, an appeals court ruled that former Trump lawyer Alina Habba had been unlawfully serving as New Jersey’s U.S. attorney.
