A federal judge ruled Monday that former Assistant United States Attorney Maurene Comey, the daughter of former FBI Director James Comey, was “unlawfully terminated” and ordered that she be reinstated to her job.The Justice Department’s abrupt firing of Comey in July 2025 violated the separation of powers and Comey’s Fifth Amendment due process and statutory rights, U.S.District Judge Jesse Furman found.
The Trump administration’s assertion that it can fire career prosecutors at will would “unsettle the very equilibrium established by this Nation’s constitutional system,” the judge wrote.He granted Comey “retroactive reinstatement and backpay effective from the date of her termination through December 20, 2025,” when she began a new job.The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Comey had worked on a number of high-profile cases in the Southern District of New York, including the prosecutions of Sean “Diddy” Combs, former Sen.Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell.
Maurene Comey filed suit in September of 2025, alleging the Trump administration provided “no legitimate explanation” for firing her after almost 10 years of service, and that it had only done so because of President Donald Trump’s “well-known and longstanding vendetta against James Comey, whom he fired as FBI Director in 2017.”Comey said the only thing she was told about her firing from her boss was that it “came from Washington.”The Justice Department later said in a court filing she was removed at the direction of then-Attorney General Pam Bondi.For SubscribersFOR SUBSCRIBERSWhich pro sport has the most level playing field? The answer might surprise youFOR SUBSCRIBERSHow to stun the world in 20 days: Lula halts pro-Trump wave with Brazil turnaround FOR SUBSCRIBERSSocial media influencer offers look into a remote ICE facility where detainees are losing hopeFOR SUBSCRIBERSAbortion, taxe...