U.S. District Court Judge Stanley Bastian has denied a motion from former President Donald Trump and the Justice Department seeking his recusal from a lawsuit filed by Roger Rogoff, a prosecutor Trump fired less than an hour after his appointment. Bastian issued a three-page order Thursday denying the request.
Rogoff's lawsuit, filed July 21, questions whether a president has the authority to fire a U.S. attorney appointed by federal judges. Rogoff had been unanimously appointed as the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington by the district's federal judges to fill a vacancy. However, he was removed from the position approximately 54 minutes later by Trump's administration.
The position had been vacant since Charles Neil Floyd, initially appointed interim U.S. attorney by then-Attorney General Pam Bondi in October for 120 days, continued to lead the office as first assistant U.S. attorney after his interim term expired in February, per the Justice Department's arrangement. Rogoff was appointed to fill the resulting vacancy.
Trump's DOJ had sought Bastian's recusal or reassignment of the case, arguing that the initial reassignment following Judge Ricardo Martinez's recusal was improper. Bastian, who was nominated by former President Barack Obama and previously stated concerns about Trump using the U.S. Postal Service for political purposes, found no legal grounds to support the motion.
"The motion also stated that Trump and the DOJ 'provide no binding authority that would require recusal,'" the order stated. Bastian argued that while the Justice Department took issue with the reassignment, "there is 'no binding precedent or rule that states reassignment must follow a certain procedure.'"