A New Jersey federal court panel removed Alina Habba from her interim role as U.S. Attorney on Tuesday, refusing to extend her 120‑day appointment. The judges appointed her first assistant, Desiree Leigh Grace, setting a temporary replacement until Senate confirmation.
Habba, previously President Trump’s campaign attorney and White House counselor, took office in March without prior prosecutorial experience. Her time on the job drew attention and criticism for aggressive moves, including charging Newark Mayor Ras Baraka in an immigration facility case and bringing federal charges against Rep. LaMonica McIver after a clash with immigration agents. Both cases sparked controversy.
Her brief term also featured investigations into Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy and Attorney General Matt Platkin regarding New Jersey’s sanctuary policies. Republican law enforcement groups had backed her full-time nomination, but two Democratic U.S. senators, Cory Booker and Andy Kim, declined to support her under the Senate’s blue-slip tradition.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, in a statement on X, accused the judges, mostly appointees of Democratic presidents, of advancing a “left‑wing agenda” by rushing to remove Habba before her term officially expired. He maintained that Habba retained full presidential backing.
Habba’s removal marks a rare rebuke of a Trump administration appointment by the judiciary. A similar move occurred recently in upstate New York, where judges declined to extend the interim term of another Trump U.S. Attorney, John Sarcone. The Justice Department responded by appointing Sarcone as a “special attorney to the attorney general.”
Desiree Leigh Grace, named by Chief Judge Renee Bumb, will serve temporarily as U.S. Attorney in New Jersey. With the 120-day interim period ended and Senate support absent, Habba has no clear path to Senate confirmation.
