A judge barred the Trump-appointed US attorney in Nevada from overseeing several criminal cases on Tuesday, ruling that she is “not validly serving” as the state’s top federal prosecutor.
US District Judge David G. Campbell disqualified Sigal Chattah from supervising four criminal prosecutions, siding with defense lawyers who argued that her authority expired in July and she is serving unlawfully. Campbell ordered government attorneys involved in the cases to inform the court within seven days that Chattah is not directing their work. However, he did not dismiss the indictments.
This marks the second recent setback for the administration’s effort to extend handpicked acting US attorneys beyond the 120-day limit set by federal law—an approach also attempted in California and New Jersey.
In August, a judge reached a similar conclusion regarding the acting US attorney in New Jersey, Alina Habba, ruling that a “novel series of legal and personnel moves” by the government was improper.
Under federal law, if a permanent US attorney is not nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate within 120 days, federal district court judges may appoint an interim attorney until the vacancy is filled, Judge Campbell explained in his ruling. He stated that Chattah’s continued appointment as acting US attorney violated this statute.
Campbell criticized the administration’s strategy of using a sequence of temporary appointments to allow Trump’s candidates to bypass the usual Senate confirmation process, which generally requires bipartisan support.
Chattah, a conservative lawyer, faced opposition from Nevada’s Democratic senators, Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen.
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