Trump-appointed judge demands Halligan explain her U.S. attorney title shellgame

A federal judge has ordered Lindsey Halligan — the loyalist insurance lawyer President Donald Trump handpicked to prosecute his enemies — to explain why she continues to claim she’s the top federal prosecutor in eastern Virginia, despite a court formally disqualifying her more than a month ago.

The new order by U.S. District Judge David Novak, who Trump appointed during his first term, represents the first formal attempt to force Halligan to explain her continued identification as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, one of the country’s most prestigious federal districts.

On Nov. 24, a different federal judge ruled that Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi had violated the Constitutional and federal vacancy laws to appoint Halligan, who formerly worked as one of  Trump’s personal attorneys.

After determining that Halligan had been serving unlawfully for several months, the judge dismissed criminal cases she brought against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, two of Trump’s longtime foes.

Despite that, Halligan and the DOJ continued to identify her as a U.S. attorney  in court filings — often dropping “acting” or “interim” from her title, even though she was never confirmed by the Senate or federal judges in the Eastern District of Virginia. 

In his order Tuesday, Novak gave Halligan seven days to explain in writing why, in light of the unlawful appointment determination, he shouldn’t strike her identification as a U.S. attorney from a criminal indictment secured after her disqualification. The judge also demanded that she explain how her continued identification “does not constitute a false or misleading statement” to a court.

In the weeks before Novak’s order, other district judges, frustrated by Halligan’s continued claim to the post, had started taking action against her. Some struck her name from documents or added asterisks referring the reader to the unlawful appointment ruling against her. One even asked why she didn’t resign.

Novak, however, is the first judge to formally demand answers from Halligan. 

Last year, Trump and Bondi used temporary appointments like Halligan’s to install and keep loyalists at the helm of several key U.S. attorney’s offices across the country. The appointees have largely used their temporary posts to target Trump’s political opponents with expressly partisan investigations.

Alina Habba, another one of Trump’s former lawyers, last month became the first of his temporary U.S. attorney picks to formally resign after courts determined she was also unlawfully appointed. 

In addition to Halligan and Habba, courts have also ruled that Sigal Chattah and Bill Essayli were illegally serving as the acting U.S. attorneys for the District of Nevada and the Central District of California, respectively. However, both remain at their posts.

A federal court could next determine that John Sarcone, Trump’s acting U.S. attorney in the northern district of New York, has also been serving unlawfully.