Federal judge reinstates Seattle U.S. attorney fired by Trump less than an hour after taking office, setting up appeal over presidential removal power
A federal judge ruled unlawful President Trump's firing of court-appointed Seattle U.S. attorney Roger Rogoff, dismissed 54 minutes after his oath, and ordered him reinstated, in the first court victory for a judicially appointed prosecutor removed by the administration. The Justice Department says it will seek an immediate stay and appeal.
What happened
A federal judge on Thursday ruled unlawful President Donald Trump's firing of Roger Rogoff, the court-appointed U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington, and ordered him reinstated to the Seattle post, according to NBC News. U.S. District Judge Stanley Bastian granted a preliminary injunction and barred the administration from obstructing Rogoff's access to the office's resources, declining to pause the ruling pending appeal. The Justice Department said in a written statement that it disagreed with the decision and would appeal: "We disagree with the decision and intend to seek an immediate stay and will appeal," the department said, per the Washington Examiner.
The dispute began on July 15, 2026, when the 17 active and senior judges of the Western District of Washington unanimously appointed Rogoff, a former judge and veteran prosecutor, after the administration failed to put forward a Senate-confirmable nominee for the seat. Trump fired Rogoff 54 minutes after he took the oath of office. Bastian held that federal law allows district judges to appoint a U.S. attorney "until the vacancy is filled," adding from the bench: "It does not say 'until the president fires the person selected.'" He said "Congress did not give the power to fill this inferior office to the president alone" and that the president "cannot unilaterally fire a United States attorney appointed by the district court," declaring Rogoff "the United States attorney for the Western District of Washington and... the rightful holder of that office since July 15, 2026."
Rogoff is believed to be the first judicially appointed U.S. attorney ousted by the Trump administration to sue over his removal, and Thursday's ruling is the first court victory for one of them, according to NBC News and the Washington Examiner. The background stretches back to October 2025, when Trump named former immigration judge Charles Neil Floyd interim U.S. attorney in Seattle but never sent his nomination to the Senate. When Floyd's 120-day interim term expired, the administration shifted his title to first assistant U.S. attorney while leaving the top post empty. Last month Trump nominated Pete Serrano, the first assistant U.S. attorney in eastern Washington, for the Seattle post; Serrano is unconfirmed and opposed by Washington's senior Democratic Sen. Patty Murray.
Why it matters
The ruling is a direct legal test of White House control over Justice Department posts and of the limits of presidential removal power over judicially appointed prosecutors. Bastian's order rests on the reading that the appointment authority Congress gave district courts is not undone by a presidential firing decision, a question legal analysts say could ultimately reach the Supreme Court. Former DOJ lawyer Abhishek Kambli noted that the Court has preserved removal limits only for "inferior officers with limited duties and no policymaking or administrative authority," leaving the outcome uncertain for a U.S. attorney's office of Seattle's size. Former federal prosecutor Bill Shipley flagged a practical limit on any reinstatement: the attorney general could reassign Seattle's staff nationwide, leaving Rogoff, in Shipley's framing, "working alone."
The case also fits a broader pattern. In December, Alina Habba resigned as New Jersey's top federal prosecutor after an appeals court found she had served unlawfully, and Rogoff is the latest in a series of judicially appointed U.S. attorneys removed by the administration, according to NBC News. For senators and courts asserting a role in who holds federal prosecutorial power, the Ninth Circuit's eventual handling of the appeal, and any Supreme Court review, will shape how vacancies at U.S. attorney's offices can be filled and unfilled across the country.
How it is being covered
Ground.news tracking shows the story is carried by 56 outlets with a left/centre/right split of 27/58/15 percent, and 47 of 52 rated sources fall in the high or very high factuality bands. Coverage is anchored in the court's language and the Justice Department's appeal pledge across the political spectrum, and ground.news flags no blindspot, meaning no major partisan cluster is absent from the story.
What to watch
First, the Justice Department's promised emergency stay motion and appeal, and whether Bastian's refusal to pause the ruling holds in the Ninth Circuit. Second, the Senate's treatment of Pete Serrano's nomination, which would moot the dispute if confirmed, and Sen. Murray's continued opposition to it. Third, whether Rogoff can function in practice, given Shipley's warning that department reassignments could hollow out his office. Fourth, parallel cases by other removed judicially appointed U.S. attorneys, which could produce a circuit split and force Supreme Court review of the removal question.
By the numbers
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