DOJ Fires Judge-Appointed U.S. Attorney Donald Kinsella
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche fired Donald T. Kinsella hours after federal judges appointed him U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York.
Overview
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche fired Donald T. Kinsella hours after federal judges in the Northern District of New York appointed him U.S. attorney, Blanche wrote on X on Wednesday.
The move escalates a dispute over interim U.S. attorney appointments after judges in the district in March 2025 found that John A. Sarcone had been unlawfully serving, court records show.
Donald T. Kinsella, 79, said he did not yet know whether the firing was lawful and planned to consult with the appointing judges, according to people familiar with his remarks.
The episode follows prior judicial rejections of Alina Habba in New Jersey and Lindsey Halligan in the Eastern District of Virginia, and it has left supervision of Northern New York prosecutions unclear, officials confirmed.
Legal experts and court officials said further litigation is likely as judges and the Justice Department seek clarity on the statutory limits of interim appointments, with potential appeals anticipated.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame this as a judicial–administrative clash that exposes a recurring pattern of the administration using novel personnel tactics to keep unconfirmed U.S. attorneys, emphasizing judicial rulings that found appointments unlawful. They foreground legal context and examples (Habbar, Halligan, Sarcone) and highlight consequences using charged terms like “clash” and “immediately fired.”
Sources (3)
FAQ
Donald T. Kinsella is a 79-year-old veteran litigator with over 50 years of experience in complex criminal and civil litigation. He served as an Assistant United States Attorney from 1989 to 1998 and then as Criminal Chief until 2002 in the Northern District of New York, and is currently a senior counsel at Whiteman Osterman & Hanna LLP.
Federal judges appointed Kinsella pursuant to 28 U.S. Code § 546(d) to replace John A. Sarcone, who was ruled to have been serving unlawfully after his 120-day interim term expired.[1]
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche fired Kinsella hours after his appointment, stating on X that 'Judges don’t pick U.S. Attorneys, [the president] does' and citing Article II of the Constitution.[3]
After Kinsella's firing, John A. Sarcone appears to remain in charge, listed as First Assistant U.S. Attorney on the office website, despite prior judicial ruling against his service.
Yes, it is the third such removal of a court-appointed U.S. attorney by the Trump administration, following cases in New Jersey and Virginia; legal experts anticipate further litigation over the president's authority to dismiss judicial appointees under 28 U.S.C. § 546.
History
This story does not have any previous versions.