Judge Orders DOJ to Reinstate Fired Prosecutor Maurene Comey

A federal judge in Manhattan ruled Monday that the Justice Department illegally fired assistant U.S. attorney Maurene Comey in July 2025, ordering her reinstated and awarding back pay through December 20, according to the Guardian's report on the ruling, which cites the Associated Press.

What did Judge Furman rule, and when?

U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman issued the decision on October 26, 2026, concluding that Comey's termination violated the constitutional separation of powers, the Guardian reported. Furman wrote that the Trump administration's position — that Congress cannot regulate the removal of federal prosecutors — "flies in the face of nearly two centuries of Supreme Court precedent." He went further, writing that accepting the government's argument "would be to unsettle the very equilibrium established by this Nation's constitutional system," per the same report.

How long had Comey worked as a federal prosecutor?

Comey served as an assistant U.S. attorney for a decade before her July 2025 firing, the Guardian reported, citing court filings. During that tenure she worked on some of the country's highest-profile federal cases, and the judge's order states she received "the highest accolades from supervisors and peers alike" from her own supervisors, according to the Guardian's account of the ruling.

Why did the government say it could fire her?

The Justice Department argued that federal prosecutors exercise the president's "conclusive and preclusive" powers, meaning the executive branch could remove them without the legal constraints that apply to other federal employees, the Guardian reported. Furman rejected that framing outright, writing, "The Court concludes the Defendants are wrong."

What did Comey argue in her lawsuit?

After her dismissal, Comey sued the Justice Department, asserting the firing violated the separation of powers, the First Amendment, and the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment, according to the Guardian's reporting. She said she believed she was targeted either because she is the daughter of James Comey — a former FBI director and a longtime critic of President Trump — or because of her perceived political affiliation and beliefs, the judge noted in the ruling as described by the Guardian.

What does the ruling order, in dollar and date terms?

Furman granted Comey retroactive reinstatement to her position and ordered back pay covering the period from her July 2025 firing through December 20, the Guardian reported. The judge said the remedy was designed to "make her whole" and to ensure she does not suffer further adverse employment consequences stemming from what he called an "unlawful termination."

What happens next?

The ruling does not resolve every claim in Comey's suit; the Guardian's report notes her legal team — Ellen Blain, Nicole Gueron, Deepa Vanamali, and others — pursued multiple constitutional theories, and the order addresses the separation-of-powers claim specifically. Whether the Justice Department appeals the reinstatement and back-pay order was not addressed in the available court reporting. The case adds to a running tally of Trump-era personnel disputes testing how far executive removal power extends over career federal prosecutors, a question Furman's opinion frames as settled by two centuries of precedent rather than open for relitigation.

mindfulAI Keyboard — An iPhone keyboard that rewrites a draft in a tone you pick. Four free AI actions a day.