Judge blocks Trump's firing of Seattle prosecutor Roger Rogoff

A federal judge on Thursday blocked President Trump's firing of Roger Rogoff as the top federal prosecutor in Seattle and restored him to the post until the Senate confirms a replacement. U.S. District Judge Stanley Bastian delivered the decision from the bench at the end of a hearing, granting Rogoff's request for reinstatement.upi.com+1

The ruling matters because it is the first time a court has said a president cannot unilaterally remove a U.S. attorney whom a district court has installed. Bastian found the president's power to fire collides with the framework the Constitution and statutes create, balancing the president's right to appoint against the Senate's right to confirm.

What the ruling decided

Bastian said the case appeared to be one of first impression. "The answer to the question the court is faced with is no. The president cannot unilaterally fire a United States attorney appointed by the district court," he said. He declared Rogoff the rightful holder of the office in the Western District of Washington.

The judge also barred the administration from carrying out the firing, denying Rogoff access to the position's benefits and resources, obstructing his duties, or treating anyone other than Rogoff as U.S. attorney. He ruled that Charles Neil Floyd, the first assistant who had been leading the office, "is not the United States attorney" and that his authority was "improperly granted."

Rogoff took his oath of office on July 15, when federal district judges in the region installed him in the role, and President Trump fired him less than an hour afterward. Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the firing in July. Rogoff, a longtime prosecutor and former state judge, then filed a lawsuit arguing his removal was unlawful.washingtonexaminer.com

How Rogoff got the job

The vacancy arose because the office had no Senate-confirmed leader since mid-2023. President Trump fired Tessa Gorman, who had been serving temporarily after district court judges appointed her in May 2024. Charles Neil Floyd began leading the office as interim U.S. attorney in October under a 120-day term that expired in February, after which he served as first assistant.

A federal law governs U.S. attorney vacancies: the attorney general may appoint an interim U.S. attorney to a 120-day term, and once that expires the district court can extend the tenure or appoint its own U.S. attorney until the Senate confirms a replacement. Because President Trump had not put forward a nominee by then, the district judges tapped Rogoff.

The vacancy law behind the case

Rogoff argued in his lawsuit that without a court order, the administration's "actions will permit the Executive Branch to evade the Senate's advice-and-consent role indefinitely." Bastian said allowing the president to fire a court-appointed prosecutor would also remove the incentive to nominate someone the Senate can confirm. President Trump nominated Simon Peter Serrano to be U.S. attorney in Seattle last month. He has also tried to install preferred candidates in Nevada, New York, Virginia and New Jersey, where federal courts in some instances involving a different mechanism found the appointments unlawful. Rogoff appears to be the first ousted prosecutor to challenge his firing in court.

What happens next

The Justice Department said it intends to appeal and will immediately seek to halt the ruling. Bastian's oral order keeps Rogoff in office until a Senate-confirmed candidate fills the spot. Rogoff said in a statement that he cares about the rule of law and is focused on getting to work for the people of Western Washington.