Latest news with #ArticleII
a day ago
- Politics
Criminal trial put on hold after defendant challenges Alina Habba's legal authority as US attorney
President Donald Trump's effort to keep his former defense attorney in charge of the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey faces a new test after a man facing drug charges filed a motion challenging Alina Habba's authority to prosecute him. A federal judge in New Jersey on Monday put the man's trial on hold and transferred the legal challenge to a judge in the Middle District of Pennsylvania to determine if Habba has the legal authority to continue acting as the United States attorney for the District of New Jersey. Trump named Habba, one of his former personal attorneys, as New Jersey's interim U.S. attorney in March, but after the Senate did not take up her confirmation before the end of her 120-day interim term, a panel of federal judges last Tuesday appointed Assistant U.S. Attorney Desiree Leigh Grace to the permanent U.S. attorney spot. Just hours later, the Justice Department fired Grace, after which the White House withdrew Habba's nomination in a procedural move to allow her to continue as the acting U.S. attorney for the state. "This Department of Justice does not tolerate rogue judges -- especially when they threaten the President's core Article II powers," Attorney General Pam Bondi said on social media last week after the panel of judges appointed Grace. Thomas Mirigliano, an attorney for Julien Giraud Jr., filed a motion Sunday to dismiss his client's case, arguing that Habba now "holds office unlawfully." Giraud Jr. was charged in 2021 with drug and weapons offenses. He pleaded not guilty and was set to go to trial on Aug. 4. "By circumventing the constitutionally mandated appointment procedures, and encroaching upon judicial powers explicitly granted by statute, the executive branch has exceeded its lawful authority," Mirigliano wrote. "Thus, all subsequent prosecutorial actions taken by Ms. Habba or any Assistant U.S. Attorneys relying on her purported authority lack constitutional legitimacy and must be deemed ultra vires." The legal challenge could have sweeping implications for defendants charged in the District of New Jersey, who may file similar motions to have their cases thrown out based on the lawfulness of Habba's appointment. After a brief conference Monday, U.S. District Judge Edward Kiel put Giraud Jr.'s trial date on hold while the motion moves through the courts. Because the federal bench in New Jersey played a role in replacing Habba, the issue was referred to Chief U.S. District Judge Matthew Brann of the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Mirigliano told ABC News that his decision to challenge Habba's authority was not political, and that his client hopes to defend himself in a fair trial. "I think it's something that, you know, needs to be dealt with in court and litigated," Mirigliano said. The New Jersey Globe was the first to report the legal development. A representative for the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABC News.
The Hill
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Ex-DOJ employees tied to Jan. 6 cases sue Trump admin for ‘unlawful' terminations
Three former Justice Department (DOJ) employees hit the Trump administration on Thursday with a lawsuit alleging wrongful termination. The effort was led by former federal prosecutor Michael Gordon, who worked on top cases related to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. The complaint was also signed by Patricia Hartman, a former public affairs specialist within the U.S. attorney's office, and Joseph Tirrell, who previously led DOJ's Departmental Ethics Office. In the court filing, the former employees allege that their firings were 'not in accordance with the law,' 'contrary to a constitutional right, power, privilege, or immunity' and 'in excess of statutory jurisdiction, authority, or limitations, or short of statutory right.' This comes amid a wave of approximately 200 terminations at the department amid President Trump's efforts to shake-up the federal workforce and root out 'waste, fraud and abuse.' 'Every time I think we're at some point when the firings are over, there's another wave,' Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said following the mass layoffs. 'So, I would predict we'll see more.' Attorney General Pam Bondi also fired 20 staffers who worked on special counsel Jack Smith's team, including cases related to Trump's retainment of classified documents after leaving the White House and his alleged the efforts to remain in power after losing the 2020 election to former President Biden. The plaintiffs argue in the lawsuit that Bondi did not have the authority to remove DOJ employees without due process, pointing to guardrails that are in place to protect employees from 'unlawful' termination. They added later in the complaint that 'employees should be protected against arbitrary action, personal favoritism, or coercion for partisan political purposes.' Gordon, a former assistant U.S. attorney was fired by Bondi without an explanation on June 27. 'The law requires that the government cannot fire a federal prosecutor without first giving warning and then giving a justification, a reason — merit-based reason for firing,' the lawyer said in an interview with WFLA. He was terminated the same day as two other assistant U.S. attorneys who also worked on Jan. 6 cases were fired. This indicated that the termination 'was retaliation for prosecutions that were perceived as politically affiliated,' the lawsuit reads. Hartman, who handled some communication related to the Jan. 6 cases, was fired on July 7 in the middle of her workday. Her memorandum of termination cited that she was let go due to Article II of the Constitution, without further explanation. Tirell, a U.S. Navy veteran, was terminated on July 11, once again without prior warning, according to the lawsuit. 'The senseless terminations at the Justice Department are growing exponentially. The very institution created to enforce the law is trampling over the civil service laws enacted by Congress. It's shameful, and it's devastating the workforce,' said Stacey Young, executive director of Justice Connection, an DOJ alumni organization trying to protect their colleagues, in a statement to The Hill.
CBS News
5 days ago
- Politics
- CBS News
Trump yanks Habba's nomination for U.S. attorney, enabling her to serve in acting capacity
Washington — President Trump on Thursday withdrew the nomination of Alina Habba, his former defense lawyer, to serve as the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey, a Justice Department official confirmed, which clears the way for her to serve as the U.S. attorney in the state in an acting capacity. Mr. Trump's move came after a federal district court set off a leadership scramble in the U.S. attorney's office when it declined to keep Habba in the role of U.S. attorney and instead installed Desiree Leigh Grace as the state's top federal prosecutor. Grace, who was Habba's deputy, was selected by the judges on the U.S. district court in New Jersey to serve as the U.S. attorney for the state as Habba's 120-day term in the post wound down. But shortly after, Attorney General Pam Bondi said that Grace had been removed as first assistant U.S. attorney, and she excoriated the judges for tapping Grace, instead of letting Habba stay in the role. "This Department of Justice does not tolerate rogue judges — especially when they threaten the president's core Article II powers," Bondi wrote on social media. The attorney general's post raised questions about who would be the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey as the 120-day clock on Habba's interim term expires. A court order signed by Chief Judge Renee Bumb said Grace's appointment was effective Tuesday or "upon the expiration of 120 days after" Habba's appointment by Bondi. But Habba said in a post on X, "I am now the Acting United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey" and indicated she would fight for the job. The Justice Department official confirmed that Mr. Trump pulled Habba's nomination for U.S. attorney, which avoids a provision of federal law that restricts a person from serving as an acting officer if the president has submitted their nomination to the Senate. That law limits her time as acting U.S. attorney to 210 days. Mr. Trump announced on March 24 that he had tapped Habba to serve as interim U.S. attorney for New Jersey, which would put the expiration of her term at July 22. But Todd Blanche, deputy attorney general, has said her tenure as interim U.S. attorney ends Friday. Habba has the Justice Department leaders behind her, and they've accused New Jersey judges of playing politics with their decision not to keep Habba in the post. Mr. Trump has nominated Habba for the role of U.S. attorney, but New Jersey's two home-state senators, Democrats Cory Booker and Andy Kim, oppose her. Habba was a member of Mr. Trump's defense team in several civil cases brought against him in New York, and she joined the White House as a counselor to the president after Mr. Trump won a second term. The president announced in March that he had tapped Habba to serve as the interim U.S. attorney in her home state of New Jersey. Federal law limited her time as interim U.S. attorney to 120 days. Habba deserves the job, according to Armen Morian, who worked alongside Habba in a 2023 New York civil case in which Mr. Trump, his company and top executives were found liable for fraud. "I think she's eminently qualified to be U.S. attorney, and I think she's doing a fine job of it," Morian said. Morian hit back at Habba's critics who questioned her suitability for the job, having never previously been a prosecutor. "President Trump is a very unconventional figure, and he forces us, I think, to reconsider a lot of the assumptions we make. Sometimes it's very useful to put somebody into an office who has shown to you that she has sufficient judgment and will do well in the position," Morian said. But the state's two senators, Booker and Kim, opposed her nomination. Under the Senate Judiciary Committee's "blue slip" policy, a nomination for U.S. attorney or to a federal district court will not move forward unless both home-state senators return positive blue slips. With the 120-day deadline on Habba's term approaching, a panel of federal judges on the U.S. district court in New Jersey invoked their power under federal law and voted to replace Habba with Grace, her deputy. Yes. A federal statute governing U.S. attorney vacancies specifies that if the attorney general's appointment of a U.S. attorney expires after 120 days, the district court can name a U.S. attorney to serve until the vacancy is filled. The law requires an order of appointment by the court to be filed with the clerk of the court. "The reason why you have this 120-day deadline followed by judicial appointments was so that the president is incentivized to get someone confirmed because after 120 days, you lose the authority within the executive branch to control who is the U.S. attorney," Thomas Barry, an expert in constitutional law at the Cato Institute, told CBS News. While rare, courts have exercised this power before. The judges on the U.S. district court in New Mexico selected Gregory Fouratt to serve as the top federal prosecutor in the state in January 2008, and in 2018, during Mr. Trump's first term, the district court in New Jersey appointed Craig Carpenito the state's U.S. attorney as his 120-day term was set to run out. Also that year, the U.S. district court in Manhattan tapped Geoffrey Berman to serve as the district's top federal prosecutor. But Berman's exit in June 2020 was rocked by confusion when then-Attorney General Bill Barr announced that Berman would be "stepping down." Berman, however, said he had not resigned and had no intention of doing so. Barr then informed Berman that Mr. Trump had removed him from the post. It doesn't seem so. In a 1979 opinion from the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel, which is not binding, then-Assistant Attorney General John Harmon explained that "the president is responsible for the conduct of a U.S. Attorney's Office and therefore must have the power to remove one he believes is an unsuitable incumbent, regardless of who appointed him." Harmon also said that when it comes to whether the attorney general has the authority to terminate a court-appointed U.S. attorney, "We answer this questions [sic] in the negative." He said federal law regarding the removal of U.S. attorneys constitutes "the specific exercise of legislative power under Article II, section 2, clause 2, vesting in the president the power of removing a court-appointed U.S. attorney." In a social media post, Blanche wrote that Grace had been ousted "pursuant to the president's authority." "This backroom vote will not override the authority of the Chief Executive," he wrote. Berry said there have been very few, if any, judicial decisions, about the removal of interim U.S. attorneys, especially if the attorney general disagrees with the court's appointment. Until Thursday, because Mr. Trump had nominated her to serve as New Jersey's chief federal prosecutor, Habba did not appear to be eligible to serve as acting U.S. attorney in the state. The situation involving Habba and the U.S. attorney position in New Jersey potentially involved the interactions of two different federal laws: the statute governing U.S. attorney vacancies, which gives district courts the power to name someone to that role temporarily; and the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, a 27-year-old law that limits the government employees who can temporarily fill the roughly 1,300 federal offices that require nomination by the president and confirmation by the Senate. Mr. Trump used the law, also known as the Vacancies Act, during his first term to install a number of "acting" leaders across the executive branch. Enacted in 1998, the Vacancies Act sets out three categories of federal workers who can move into a position covered by the law: the "first assistant," or deputy, to the vacant office; another administration official who has been confirmed by the Senate; and an agency employee who has worked there for at least 90 days in the year before the vacancy occurred and is at the highest level of the civil service pay scale. Grace, who the New Jersey judges selected to succeed Habba, was the first assistant. But the law prohibits a person from serving as an acting officer if the president has submitted their nomination to the Senate. The upper chamber received Habba's nomination from Mr. Trump on June 30. His withdrawal of her nomination now enables Habba to serve as acting U.S. attorney. Mr. Trump appears to have used the Vacancies Act to put at least one acting attorney general in place — John Sarcone who is currently leading the U.S. Attorney's Office in Albany. Bondi announced in early March that Sarcone had been appointed the interim top federal prosecutor for the Northern District of New York, but earlier this month, the U.S. district court there declined to tap him for U.S. attorney. Bondi instead named him "special attorney to the attorney general," which effectively gives him the power of a U.S. attorney. Sarcone was named first assistant U.S. attorney as well, effectively leaving him in charge of the office. Berry said there is a loophole in the Vacancies Act that allows a lower-ranking official who does not require Senate confirmation to perform the duties of a senior leader when that role is vacant, which could be used to Habba's benefit. "Subdelegation is so easy to do throughout the executive branch," he said. "This exact same maneuver is done all the time for all sorts of offices." In a post Wednesday on LinkedIn, Grace indicated she is no longer the No. 2 in the U.S. attorney's office in New Jersey, but signaled she was prepared to follow the judges' order that names her the interim U.S. attorney, even though Bondi fired her from her post as the first assistant. "It will forever be the greatest honor that they selected me on merit, and I'm prepared to follow that Order and begin to serve in accordance with the law," Grace wrote. The dozens of comments beneath Grace's LinkedIn post highlight her deep ties in the state, and high regard among New Jersey law enforcement. Minneapolis Chief of Police Brian O'Hara, who previously was Newark, New Jersey's Safety Director, congratulated Grace. "Desiree Grace Anyone who knows you knows the heart, integrity, and commitment you bring to the job. You have definitely made a difference," O'Hara wrote.
The Hill
5 days ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Fired NJ prosecutor says she's prepared to take job
A New Jersey prosecutor selected by judges to replace President Trump's pick for U.S. attorney, Alina Habba, said Wednesday she is prepared to assume the role, despite having been fired by top Justice Department (DOJ) officials a day earlier. Desiree Grace, the prosecutor, said in a LinkedIn post that she's honored by her appointment 'on merit' and is ready to begin serving 'in accordance with the law.' 'I've served under both Republican and Democratic administrations,' she wrote in the lengthy post. 'I've been promoted four times in the last five years by both — including four months ago by this administration. Politics never impacted my work at the Department. Priorities change, of course, and resources are shifted, but the work and the mission were steady.' Grace's intention to abide by the judges' order heightens the standoff with senior Justice Department officials in Washington, who have doubled down in support of Habba continuing to lead the U.S. attorney's office for New Jersey. A former personal lawyer to Trump, Habba's 120-day interim term is set to expire this week. Her trial period has at times been contentious; two Democratic public officials faced criminal charges over an incident at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility under her leadership. On Tuesday, the U.S. District Court of New Jersey issued a terse standing order declining to retain her, instead appointing Grace to serve in the role indefinitely after a private vote Monday. Attorney General Pam Bondi responded to the judges' decision by terminating Grace's employment. 'This Department of Justice does not tolerate rogue judges — especially when they threaten the President's core Article II powers,' Bondi wrote. Though Bondi said she removed Grace, it's not clear she had the authority to do so. Only the president is empowered to remove U.S. attorneys appointed by judges, legal experts previously told The Hill. Grace's post seemed to double as a goodbye message, despite her defiant words announcing readiness to assume the role. 'It has been the honor of a lifetime to represent the United States and to serve the people of New Jersey for the last nine years,' Grace said. 'There's no better place to work. There's no mission more important. 'How lucky I've been to be guided by nothing more than the genuine desire to do the right thing for the right reason each and every day,' she added.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Trump can fire Democrat CPSC members: SCOTUS backs US president; overturns lower court order
Representational image In a 6–3 ruling on Wednesday, the US supreme court sided with president Donald Trump in a case concerning the removal of three Democratic members from the consumer product safety commission (CPSC). The ruling allows Trump to go ahead with the dismissals, overturning earlier decisions from a federal judge and an appeals court that had reinstated the board members. The three officials Mary Boyle, Alexander Hoehn-Saric, and Richard Trumka Jr, were removed from the CPSC by the Trump administration. They were later reinstated by US district judge Matthew Maddox, who ruled the firings unlawful. Maddox, a Biden appointee, said that the structure of the independent agency did not violate Trump's constitutional powers under Article II. Trump's legal team challenged the ruling in the supreme court, arguing that the president had the authority to remove members of independent boards. The administration cited a recent decision involving other federal bodies the national labour relations board (NLRB) and the merit systems protection board (MSPB) to claim the precedent applied here too. The three ousted members opposed the emergency appeal, pointing out that their sudden removal would harm the functioning of the CPSC and lacked any clear urgency, especially since the administration had waited four months to act. Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented from the ruling.
