Veteran prosecutor and former Washington state judge Roger Rogoff briefly became the top federal prosecutor for Western Washington on Wednesday. However, President Donald Trump removed him from office in less than an hour.
Rogoff was sworn in shortly before 8 am at the federal courthouse in Seattle after the judges of the US District Court for the Western District of Washington unanimously appointed him to the position. However, while waiting to meet officials at the US Attorney’s Office, he received an email informing him that the Trump administration had terminated his appointment.
Speaking to the Associated Press, Rogoff said he is now considering legal action. “I’m consulting with other lawyers about suing over my firing,” he said.
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Who is Roger Rogoff?
Roger Rogoff is a longtime Washington prosecutor with experience spanning state and federal courts.
According to AP, he served 20 years as a state prosecutor and six years as a federal prosecutor. He was then serving as a Washington state judge. Throughout his career, he handled criminal prosecutions and regularly appeared before federal courts in Western Washington.
His appointment followed a unanimous vote by the district’s 17 active and senior federal judges, who were appointed by five different US presidents. The court selected Rogoff after reviewing applications through a bipartisan panel established to recommend candidates.
Following his removal, Rogoff reflected on the appointment. “I’m really proud of my career,” he told AP.
“The fact that the judges of this district — most of whom I’ve spent my career appearing in front of, or trying cases against, or working with — believed that I was the right person to do this work is just really humbling and amazing.”
Senator Patty Murray, a Democrat representing Washington criticized his firing, saying, “Throughout his career, he has demonstrated an outstanding commitment to public service, and he was appointed legally by the federal judges in the Western District of Washington,” Murray said.
Rogoff also described serving as US attorney as “the best job there is” for a prosecutor.
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Why was Rogoff fired so quickly?
The dispute centres on the appointment of Charles Neil Floyd, whom Trump named interim US attorney in October 2025.
Under federal law, interim US attorneys generally serve for 120 days. If the Senate has not confirmed a presidential nominee by then, federal district judges may appoint a replacement.
A federal appeals court questioned the legality of that approach in May, prompting judges in Western Washington to begin their own appointment process. They unanimously selected Rogoff on Wednesday morning. (Source: AP News.)
Hours later, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche defended the President’s decision in a post on X. He accused the judges of abandoning “the time-honored process of consultation with the administration so that the selected U.S. Attorney is qualified to serve in the administration.”
Blanche wrote, “District court judges can appoint a temporary U.S. Attorney, and POTUS can fire them.”
