Overview
- U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman found on Monday that the Justice Department unlawfully removed Maurene Comey from her job as an assistant U.S. attorney in July 2025 and ordered retroactive reinstatement and backpay through Dec. 20, 2025.
- Furman rejected the DOJ’s expansive Article II theory that the president or attorney general may remove career prosecutors at will and said accepting that view would unsettle long‑standing precedent and statutory limits on removals.
- The judge granted remedies to make Comey whole, directing the restoration of retirement credits, a change in her personnel file to show resignation rather than termination, and an order to calculate backpay.
- The court reserved decision on Comey’s First Amendment claim and set a schedule for further briefing, so the ruling is not yet final and the Justice Department has said it will appeal.
- The case highlights broader stakes for civil service protections and the separation of powers by testing whether career prosecutors can be dismissed for political reasons and signals possible ripple effects for other personnel actions taken by the administration.