A federal appeals court on Oct. 4 put on hold a lower court judge’s order that reinstated a federal prosecutor in the Seattle area who had been fired by the Trump administration earlier this year.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granted a Trump administration request for an administrative stay as the case proceeds. This will keep the fired prosecutor, Roger Rogoff, from taking the role as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington.
The unsigned order noted that the request for an administrative stay was issued only “to preserve the status quo until the substantive motion for a stay pending appeal can be considered on the merits, and does not constitute in any way a decision as to the merits” of the Trump administration’s decision to fire Rogoff.
U.S. District Judge Stanley Bastian on Oct. 1 found that Rogoff’s termination was unlawful and reinstated him, writing that when presidents fail to fill a U.S. attorney post with a nominee confirmed by the Senate, federal law authorizes the judges of that district to appoint someone “until the vacancy is filled.”
“Rogoff is the United States attorney for the Western District of Washington, and has been the rightful holder of that office since July 15, 2026, when he took the oath of office,” Bastian wrote. “Congress did not give the power to fill this inferior office to the president alone.”
Bastian also added that the Trump administration “cannot unilaterally fire a United States attorney appointed by the district court.”
The Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a statement on Oct. 1 that it would seek an immediate stay in response to the judge’s decision.
In July, Rogoff was terminated hours after a panel of federal judges in Washington state appointed him as U.S. attorney to fill a vacancy, with Attorney General Todd Blanche saying that presidents, not judges, have the authority to do so.
Writing on X, Blanche said that “district court judges can appoint a temporary U.S. Attorney, and POTUS can fire them,” and that the federal judges had “abandoned the time-honored process of consultation with the administration so that the selected U.S. attorney is qualified to serve in the administration.”
When he was confirmed by the panel, the judges wrote at the time that Rogoff had “deep ties” to the district, which includes Seattle, Tacoma, Olympia, and other areas in western Washington state.
They also said he is “authorized to serve as the United States Attorney for the Western District of Washington until the vacancy is filled by an officer appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate [under the Constitution].”
Presidents generally appoint U.S. attorneys, who serve as the top federal prosecutors in each judicial district. The positions require Senate confirmation, except for temporary appointments. When those expire, judges in the judicial district can name a replacement U.S. attorney.
The Trump administration has made similar moves in other districts, including in New Jersey, New York, and Virginia.
Blanche in February confirmed that New York prosecutor Donald Kinsella was fired on the same day that he was named by judges as U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York. Also in February, the administration removed James Hundley following his appointment by a panel of judges in the Eastern District of Virginia.
Last year, then-Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote that Desiree Leigh Grace was fired only hours after she was appointed as the U.S. attorney for New Jersey. Bondi said that “rogue judges” acted to appoint Grace, arguing that Section II of the Constitution allows only for the president to hire U.S. attorneys.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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