Latest news with #DesireeGrace
Al Jazeera
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Judges reject Trump lawyer Alina Habba's bid to serve as federal prosecutor
The Trump administration quickly acted to remove Habba's replacement following a decision not to extend her term. A panel of federal judges have declined to extend Alina Habba's term as a United States attorney for the district of New Jersey beyond the interim period of 120 days. Tuesday's court order, signed by the chief judge for the District of New Jersey, Renee Marie Bumb, brings Habba's brief tenure to an end for now. The judges instead elevated Desiree Grace, Habba's deputy at the US Attorney's Office in New Jersey, to serve as the bureau's top federal prosecutor. But the administration of President Donald Trump quickly denounced the judges' decision as political activism and fired Grace from the role before she could even take up the post. '[Alina Habba] has been doing a great job in making NJ safe again. Nonetheless, politically minded judges refused to allow her to continue in her position, replacing Alina with the First Assistant,' Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote on social media. 'Accordingly, the First Assistant United States Attorney in New Jersey has just been removed. This Department of Justice does not tolerate rogue judges.' Habba's time as interim US attorney has sparked controversy as yet another example of Trump picking close personal contacts to serve in government roles. Habba herself has also been accused of carrying out politically motivated prosecutions while acting as the US lawyer. During her four-month tenure, she pursued cases against several Democratic lawmakers, including Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and US Representative LaMonica McIver. Both prosecutions stemmed from an effort by lawmakers to visit and inspect an immigrant detention facility in New Jersey. Trump has made mass deportation a central pillar of his second term, and that, in turn, has stirred fears about the safety and rights of those held in the detention facilities. Advertisement Controversial cases In the case of Baraka and McIver, the incident in question took place on May 9 at the Delaney Hall detention centre outside of Newark. Baraka, at the time a gubernatorial candidate for the Democratic Party, had repeatedly protested the newly opened facility for allegedly lacking the proper local permits. According to Baraka's defence team, he was invited inside the Delaney Hall gate along with members of the US Congress, who have a right to inspect federal facilities as part of their oversight duties. But he was asked to leave, and once he was outside the gate, he was handcuffed and led away. Habba later announced he had been charged with trespassing. Within 10 days, however, Habba walked back those charges 'after extensive consideration'. In a court hearing to dismiss the case, US Magistrate Judge Andre Espinosa chided a representative from Habba's office for making a 'worrisome misstep'. Espinosa told prosecutors that arresting a public figure should not be used as an 'investigative tool' and warned that criminal charges carry 'significant reputational and personal consequences'. Still, at the same time as she dropped the case against Baraka, Habba launched a case against Representative McIver, who had sought to defend the Newark mayor as he was being arrested. Habba sued McIver for physical assault after she allegedly pushed into a federal agent in the tightly packed crowd outside Delaney Hall. McIver has denied the charge and accused Habba of attempting to 'intimidate' her. Baraka, meanwhile, sued Habba over 'malicious prosecution'. Habba has also launched investigations into Democratic Governor Phil Murphy and Attorney General Matt Platkin over resistance to working more closely with the Trump administration on immigration enforcement. Ties to Trump Before joining the Trump administration as an interim US attorney, Habba served as the president's personal lawyer. She represented him in several civil cases before he returned to the White House in January. In one case, Habba represented Trump in a defamation suit brought by Summer Zervos, a former contestant on his reality television show The Apprentice. After Habba threatened a countersuit, Zervos dropped her defamation complaint. But she also was part of two high-profile cases that Trump lost: a civil fraud case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James and a defamation suit brought by writer E Jean Carroll. Trump has appealed both. In March, shortly after taking office for a second term, Trump appointed Habba to serve in the Department of Justice as a US attorney, the chief law enforcement officer in a given district. Advertisement But her position was on an interim basis, capped at 120 days. Continuing in the position beyond the interim period required the approval of a judicial panel. Still, Trump has signalled that he had hopes to keep Habba in her position. Earlier this month, he submitted a formal nomination to the US Senate for Habba to remain a US attorney. But that nomination faces opposition from New Jersey Senators Cory Booker and Andy Kim, who question whether Habba is qualified. Habba had not worked as a prosecutor until Trump appointed her to the role, and the Senate has yet to act on her nomination. Several of Trump's other nominees to the Department of Justice have faced similar pushback. Last week, a US District Court for the Northern District of New York declined to keep interim US attorney John Sarcone in place after his 120-day term neared its end. Nevertheless, members of the Trump administration were defiant in the face of the setbacks. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, another former personal lawyer to the president, accused the judges in New Jersey of having 'forced out' Habba on political grounds. 'The district judges in NJ just proved this was never about law—it was about politics,' Blanche wrote on social media. 'This backroom vote will not override the authority of the Chief Executive.'
Fox News
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
DOJ swiftly fires Alina Habba's court-appointed replacement for US attorney in New Jersey
NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles! Interim U.S. Attorney Alina Habba's future as the top prosecutor in the District of New Jersey was thrust into uncertainty Tuesday after district court judges voted against keeping her in the role and the Trump Department of Justice (DOJ) swiftly moved to fire her replacement. Habba's 120-day term is set to expire this week, giving the judges the authority to either choose to extend her term or replace her. While the bench of judges in New Jersey, most of whom were appointed by Democratic presidents, voted to replace Habba with Desiree Grace, a career DOJ attorney who served as Habba's top assistant, the department announced that in a twist, it had fired Grace. ALINA HABBA: WE MUST REFOCUS TAXPAYER DOLLARS ON IMPORTANT THINGS "The district judges in NJ just proved this was never about law—it was about politics," Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote on X. "They forced out President Trump's pick, then installed her deputy, colluding with the NJ Senators along the way. It won't work. Pursuant to the President's authority, we have removed that deputy, effective immediately. This backroom vote will not override the authority of the Chief Executive." Habba, who served as President Donald Trump's personal lawyer and legal spokeswoman during his campaign, stirred controversy soon after she ascended to U.S. attorney. She had Newark's Democratic mayor, Ras Baraka, arrested in May for allegedly trespassing in an immigration detention facility. But Habba quickly dropped the charges, and a judge scolded her for the move, suggesting she was attempting to "satisfy public clamor." Baraka is now suing Habba for defamation. Trump made clear this month he wanted to keep Habba as U.S. attorney, nominating her for the full four-year position earlier this month. Habba also nabbed endorsements from several law enforcement groups, who praised her as a tough prosecutor who would prioritize street crime. But Habba has also been heavily criticized for having no prior prosecutorial experience and politicizing the role, including by saying on a right-wing podcast after she took the job that she hoped to help "turn New Jersey red." WHITE HOUSE HITS BACK AT DEM MAYOR SUING US ATTORNEY AFTER ICE ARREST: 'DESPERATE ATTEMPT' Habba has no current path to Senate confirmation after New Jersey's two Democratic senators, Cory Booker and Andy Kim, declined to give favorable recommendations for her as part of the Senate's "blue slip" tradition. Booker congratulated Grace in a statement Tuesday. "I respect the District Court's decision today to exercise its authority to appoint a new United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey and congratulate Desiree Grace, who has served as a prosecutor in the office since 2016, on her appointment," Booker wrote, adding that New Jerseyans deserve an attorney "who will enforce the law without fear or favor." Trump found a roundabout way to temporarily reinstate the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York, who had been in a situation similar to Habba's. Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Blanche defended Habba in a statement on Tuesday, saying the judges, most of whom were appointed by Democratic presidents, were "trying to force out" Habba early and that her term did not end until Friday. "Their rush reveals what this was always about: a left-wing agenda, not the rule of law," Blanche wrote on X. "When judges act like activists, they undermine confidence in our justice system. Alina is President Trump's choice to lead — and no partisan bench can override that." Fox News' Bill Mears contributed to this report.
Bloomberg
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Alina Habba Fails to Get US Attorney Nod From New Jersey Court
Federal trial judges in New Jersey appointed Desiree Grace, first assistant in the state's US attorney's office, as interim head of the office, declining to extend the appointment of current temporary chief Alina Habba. The appointment was announced by the District Court for the District of New Jersey in a Tuesday standing order signed by Chief Judge Renee Marie Bumb.
Reuters
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Judges vote to not keep Habba as interim US attorney of New Jersey
WASHINGTON, July 22 (Reuters) - A panel of judges in the U.S. District Court in New Jersey declined to permanently appoint President Donald Trump's former lawyer Alina Habba as the state's top federal prosecutor, according to an order from the court. Habba has been serving as New Jersey's interim U.S. attorney since her appointment by Trump in March, but was limited by law to 120 days in office unless the court agreed to keep her in place. The U.S. Senate has not yet acted on her formal nomination to the role, submitted by Trump this month. The court instead appointed the office's No. 2 attorney, Desiree Grace, the order said. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York last week declined to keep Trump's U.S. attorney pick John Sarcone in place after his 120-day term neared expiration. Sarcone managed to stay in the office after the Justice Department found a workaround by naming him as "special attorney to the attorney general," according to the New York Times. Habba's brief tenure as New Jersey's interim U.S. attorney included the filing of multiple legal actions against Democratic elected officials. Her office brought criminal charges against Democratic U.S. Representative LaMonica McIver, as she and other members of Congress and Newark's Democratic mayor, Ras Baraka, tried to visit an immigration detention center. The scene grew chaotic after immigration agents tried to arrest Baraka for trespassing, and McIver's elbows appeared to make brief contact with an immigration officer. Habba's office charged McIver with two counts of assaulting and impeding a law enforcement officer. McIver has pleaded not guilty. Habba's office did not follow Justice Department rules which require prosecutors to seek permission from the Public Integrity Section before bringing criminal charges against a member of Congress for conduct related to their official duties. Habba's office also charged Baraka, but later dropped the case, prompting a federal magistrate judge to criticize her office for its handling of the matter. Until March, Habba had never worked as a prosecutor. She represented Trump in a variety of civil litigation, including a trial in which a jury found Trump liable for defaming writer E. Jean Carroll after she accused him of raping her in the mid-1990s in a department store dressing room. In 2023, a federal judge in Florida sanctioned Trump and Habba and ordered them to pay $1 million for filing a frivolous lawsuit which alleged that Hillary Clinton and others conspired to damage Trump's reputation in the investigation into Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. (This story has been refiled to capitalize US in the headline)
Bloomberg
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
NJ Judges Pick Desiree Grace to Replace Alina Habba as US Attorney
Desiree Grace, a rising federal prosecutor in New Jersey, has been appointed as the US attorney in the state. Grace was appointed Tuesday by federal judges in New Jersey, according to an order posted by US District Judge Renee Bumb, the chief federal judge. Grace replaces Alina Habba, a former personal attorney for President Donald Trump, whose 120-day interim term expired.
