Federal Judge Rules on California Prosecutor’s Status
A federal judge has determined that the First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California has been serving in an illegal capacity as the chief prosecutor for Los Angeles.
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge J. Michael Seabright, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, stated in a legal order that Bill Essayli is “unlawfully serving as a ‘de facto’ United States Attorney” and is “disqualified from participating in or supervising” any cases.
Seabright also remarked that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) improperly retained Essayli in this role beyond the 120-day legal limit that generally applies to acting U.S. attorneys.
Essayli was appointed as interim U.S. attorney by then-Attorney General Pam Bondi in March 2025. Following the conclusion of his 120-day term in July 2025, instead of stepping down completely, he resigned and was reappointed as a special attorney, thus maintaining his authority.
The court concluded that this setup contravened the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, which lays down rules regarding temporary appointments.
An earlier ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in the case involving United States v. Jackson established that the federal government could not bypass this act by appointing someone as a special attorney or first assistant. In response, Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a revised order of designation, but Seabright found that this alteration did not adequately address the issue.
Due to this ruling, Essayli was disqualified from two particular cases involving Jaime Hector Ramirez and Tu Anh Tran. While their indictments remain intact, Essayli is prohibited from participating in or overseeing any actions related to them, including supervising other attorneys working on these cases.
“Just so there’s no confusion, today’s order is stayed and has no immediate effect,” Essayli stated in a post on X Tuesday night. “I remain First Assistant U.S. Attorney and continue running the office. The Supreme Court will ultimately decide this matter.”
The government has a window of 10 business days to file any opposition, which could include a request for a stay pending an appeal. If the government fails to file it on time, or if the court denies such a request, the disqualification order regarding Essayli will go into effect a week after the decision on the motion for a stay.
