ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) \u2014 A lawyer appointed by judges to be the U.S. attorney for northern New York was immediately fired by the Justice Department in the latest clash between the Trump administration and the judiciary over the process for selecting top federal prosecutors.<\/p>\n
Donald Kinsella spent less than a day in the position before he was dismissed on Wednesday. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced his firing in a social media post.<\/p>\n
\u201cJudges don\u2019t pick U.S. Attorneys,\u201d the president does, Blanche wrote, adding, \u201cYou are fired, Donald Kinsella.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was unclear Thursday who was supervising the office, which handles federal prosecutions and other legal matters for a broad swath of upstate New York. <\/p>\n
The district court judges posted a brief statement Thursday saying they had acted under their legal authority in appointing Kinsella.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Court thanks Donald T. Kinsella for his willingness to return to public service so that this vacancy could be filled with a qualified, experienced former prosecutor, and for his years of distinguished work on behalf of the citizens of the Northern District of New York,\u201d read the statement.<\/p>\n
President Donald Trump\u2019s pick to lead the office, John Sarcone, is among a number of interim U.S. attorneys installed by the administration who judges have found to be unlawfully serving in their positions.<\/p>\n
U.S. law normally requires senate confirmation for U.S. attorneys, and only allows people to serve in the position without that confirmation for limited time periods. Under Trump, however, the Justice Department has sought to leave unconfirmed prosecutors in their positions indefinitely, often through novel personnel maneuvers that courts have later ruled to be improper.<\/p>\n
In December, Alina Habba<\/a>resigned<\/a> as the top federal prosecutor for New Jersey after an appeals court said she had been serving in the post unlawfully<\/a>. <\/p>\n Lindsey Halligan, who pursued indictments<\/a> against a pair of Trump\u2019s adversaries<\/a>, left her position as an acting U.S. attorney in Virginia after a judge concluded<\/a> in November that her appointment was unlawful and that indictments she brought<\/a> against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey must be dismissed.<\/p>\n U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Sarcone to serve as the interim U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York in March 2025. But when his 120-day term elapsed, judges in the district declined<\/a> to keep him in the post. <\/p>\n Sarcone stayed on anyway, and while in his position pursued another investigation of James, a Democrat and longtime Trump foe. <\/p>\n