A federal judge in New York has ruled that the Trump administration’s dismissal of former prosecutor Maurene Comey in the summer of 2025 was unlawful, ordering her retroactive reinstatement and the payment of back wages.
Judge Orders Retroactive Reinstatement and Back Pay
Federal Judge Jesse Furman issued the ruling on Monday, October 26, declaring the termination illegal and directing that Comey be reinstated retroactively. The order also requires the government to pay her lost salary from the date of her dismissal through December 20, 2025, the date the court determined she accepted another job.
Comey, who had spent a decade at the federal prosecutor’s office in New York, learned of her immediate dismissal on July 16, 2025. According to the civil complaint she filed, she received no explanation for her removal, which was communicated in a single email referencing Article 2 of the Constitution, the provision that defines and frames the powers of the American president.
Complaint Pointed to Father’s Role and Political Affiliation
The complaint argued that no legitimate justification existed for the dismissal. It asserted that she was terminated solely, or primarily, because her father is former FBI Director James Comey, or because of her supposed political opinions and affiliations, or both.
At the time of her removal, Maurene Comey was involved in the investigation into the Epstein case. She was also part of the team handling sex trafficking charges against hip-hop mogul P. Diddy.
James Comey a Longtime Target of Trump
The former FBI director was abruptly fired by Donald Trump in 2017, early in his first term, while he was overseeing an investigation into suspected foreign interference in the election campaign. James Comey has since become a declared opponent of the president, painting a scathing portrait of him in a book.
Maurene Comey was part of the team that investigated the case against financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who was linked to numerous political and business figures. The Epstein affair has clouded the first year of Trump’s current presidency; the president had long been close to Epstein before the relationship ended. Under pressure from public opinion and Congress, the Justice Department began releasing its archives concerning Epstein, who was found dead in his cell in 2019, in December.
