DOJ ousts acting US attorney in Virginia hours after judicial appointment

The Justice Department on Friday removed the lawyer who had been appointed hours earlier as acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia amid a dispute over the authority to hold that position.

U.S. District Judge M. Hannah Lauck swore in James Hundley after district judges unanimously appointed him, the court office said. However, later that evening, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced on X that Hundley was removed from the post.

"EDVA [Eastern District of Virginia] judges do not pick our US Attorney. POTUS does. James Hundley, you’re fired!" Blanche wrote in communicating the decision.

Origin of conflict

The federal office in the Eastern District of Virginia has been in a period of instability since September, when then-U.S. Attorney Erik Siebert stepped down after pressure from the administration. Lindsey Halligan, who brought charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey, was subsequently appointed; both cases were dismissed.

In November, federal Judge Cameron Currie ruled that Halligan could not continue in office as the 120-day time limit applicable to certain interim appointments had expired. Lauck issued an order holding that Halligan could not serve beyond that period following her appointment by Attorney General Pam Bondi, and noted that the court may appoint a prosecutor until the position is filled by a Senate-confirmed nominee.

After the vacancy was posted, the justices chose Hundley.