Federal judge rules Maurene Comey’s firing by Trump administration was illegal

A federal judge ruled Monday that the Trump administration’s firing of Maurene Comey, a former federal prosecutor and daughter of former FBI Director James Comey, was unlawful.Maurene Comey was abruptly fired from the Justice Department in July 2025, which she claimed came without any notice or explanation and was due to a vendetta against her father. As a federal prosecutor at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, Comey had brought criminal cases against Ghislaine Maxwell and rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs. She later filed a criminal complaint against the DOJ in September 2025.In his opinion, U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman, appointed by former President Barack Obama, said Comey’s firing violated the Civil Service Reform Act and rejected the DOJ’s claim that the president holds the ability to fire federal prosecutors under Article II of the Constitution. Furman said the defendant’s claims that presidential power supersedes the right to due process “flies in the face of over forty years of consistent policy and practice of the Executive Branch.”“Defendants’ contention that recent Supreme Court decisions have fatally undermined that precedent is not one that this Court, as a lower court, may accept,” Furman said. “It is also without merit. Indeed, to accept Defendants’ argument would be to unsettle the very equilibrium established by this Nation’s constitutional system.”Furman ordered the DOJ to grant Comey retroactive reinstatement and back pay from her July 2025 termination through December 2025, at which point she took on the role of a partner ⁠at law ​firm Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler. Additionally, Furman granted Comey’s request for a declaration that the Trump administration violated the separation of powers, the Administrative Procedure Act, and her right to due process.Comey alleged she was fired by then-Attorney General Pam Bondi “because her father is former FBI Director James B. Comey, or because of her perceived political affiliation and beliefs, or both.” She cited the long-running feud between her father and President Donald Trump. Trump fired the former FBI director during his first administration.Central to her legal argument is the influence of right-wing activist Laura Loomer, who was close to Trump and had a history of targeting federal employees she considers disloyal to the president. Loomer had claimed credit for Maurene Comey’s firing on the day of her termination.ANTI-ICE GROUP SAYS FBI CAME KNOCKING AFTER TALKS ABOUT KILLING CONSERVATIVESComey’s father is still facing charges from the DOJ over a social media post with a photo showing seashells arranged as “86 47,” which the department claims references a threat to Trump’s life. “Eighty-six” is a term used in the hospitality industry with multiple meanings, including noting that an item is out of stock or that someone is not allowed on the premises. Trump is the 47th U.S. president.The Washington Examiner reached out to the Department of Justice for comment.