A federal appeals court on Friday ruled that President Trump did not have the authority to appoint Acting US Attorney for the Northern District of New York, John Sarcone.
A three-judge panel in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, in a 2-1 vote, said John Sarcone was unlawfully appointed when he subpoenaed New York Attorney General Letitia James.
The three-judge panel included: Judge Guido Calabresi (Clinton), Judge Michael Park (Trump), and Judge Maria Kahn (Biden).
Earlier this year, a federal judge disqualified the Trump-appointed US Attorney for the Northern District of New York overseeing investigations into New York Attorney General Letitia James.
US District Judge Lorna Schofield, an Obama appointee, disqualified acting US Attorney John Sarcone and quashed two subpoenas issued to Letitia James.
John Sarcone was investigating Letitia James’s lawfare civil suit against President Trump and her lawsuit against the National Rifle Association (NRA).
Letitia James asked the judge to quash two subpoenas, arguing that Sarcone was unlawfully appointed and given a “special attorney” status.
The judge lashed out at then-US Attorney General Pam Bondi for making Sarcone an Acting US Attorney after his 120-day interim role expired.
“Instead, on the same day that the judges declined to extend Mr. Sarcone’s appointment, the Department took coordinated steps — through personnel moves and shifting titles — to install Mr. Sarcone as Acting U.S. Attorney. Federal law does not permit such a workaround,” the judge wrote, according to CBS News.
Sarcone is the fifth Trump-appointed US Attorney to be disqualified by a rogue judge.
CBS News reported:
A federal appeals court on Friday said the top federal prosecutor in the Northern District of New York was unlawfully serving in his role when he subpoenaed New York Attorney General Letitia James as part of two investigations into her last year.
A Justice Department spokesperson quickly said the Trump administration intends to appeal the ruling directly to the Supreme Court, setting up a showdown over the Trump administration’s repeated attempts across the country to make an end-run around federal law to keep their choice of prosecutors in office without Senate confirmation.
In a 2-1 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit ruled against John Sarcone, who has been leading the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Albany for more than a year.
The two judges in the majority said Sarcone’s appointment in 2025 did not conform with a federal law known as the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, meaning he was not lawfully serving as the acting U.S. attorney when he secured the subpoenas targeting James.
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