A judge has just disqualified Los Angeles’s top federal prosecutor. On Tuesday, District Judge J. Michael Seabright ruled that Trump-appointed U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli has been “unlawfully” serving in his role. Here are the details: BREAKING: Judge DISQUALIFIES Trump appointee BILL ESSAYLI as Acting US Attorney for the Central District of California. Absolutely outrageous. This must be overturned at ONCE. The Senate needs to fix this crap ASAP by IGNORING the “BLUE SLIP” rule so Essayli can get… pic.twitter.com/rxSrsgbWHx — Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) October 29, 2025 BREAKING: Judge DISQUALIFIES Trump appointee BILL ESSAYLI as Acting US Attorney for the Central District of California. Absolutely outrageous. This must be overturned at ONCE. The Senate needs to fix this crap ASAP by IGNORING the “BLUE SLIP” rule so Essayli can get through! Chuck Grassley, please do it! After being appointed to serve as Acting U.S. Attorney in LA after the departure of his predecessor, Essayli was originally supposed to leave after 120 days. That ended in July, but Pam Bondi granted an extension. In his ruling, Judge Seabright essentially said that the extension was illegal and disqualified Essayli from continuing to serve as U.S. Attorney. Politico reported: Bill Essayli, Trump’s pick in April to temporarily lead the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, should have departed the post by July 31 under a 120-day limit imposed by federal law, U.S. District Judge J. Michael Seabright concluded. An unusual maneuver by Attorney General Pam Bondi to extend Essayli’s tenure into 2026 violated federal appointment laws, the Hawaii-based George W. Bush appointee ruled. “Simply stated: Essayli unlawfully assumed the role of Acting United States Attorney for the Central District of California,” Seabright concluded. “Essayli may not perform the functions and duties of the United States Attorney … He is disqualified from serving in that role.” This marks the third time a judge has disqualified a Trump-appointed U.S. Attorney. AP noted: The decision represents another setback to the Trump administration’s effort to extend handpicked acting U.S. attorneys beyond the 120-day limit set by federal law. A judge ruled in September that acting U.S. attorney of Nevada, Sigal Chattah, was serving in her position illegally. Another judge disqualified acting U.S. attorney in New Jersey, Alina Habba, in August. Importantly, the judge’s ruling does not dismiss any of Essayli’s indictments, since they were also signed by other attorneys. It also does not prevent him from serving as First Assistant U.S. Attorney. In a statement responding to the ruling, Essayli says he’s not going anywhere: For those who didn’t read the entire order, nothing is changing. I continue serving as the top federal prosecutor in the Central District of California. It ‘s an honor and privilege to serve President Trump and Attorney General Bondi, and I look forward to advancing their agenda… pic.twitter.com/0T7AILbLi1 — Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) October 29, 2025