President Donald Trump dismissed the top federal prosecutor in Sacramento shortly after she alerted immigration agents that they were not permitted to detain individuals arbitrarily within her jurisdiction, according to documents evaluated by The New York Times.
Michele Beckwith, who took the role of acting US attorney in Sacramento this January, was informed via email at 4:31 PM on July 15 that the president had ordered her termination.
The day before, Beckwith had a conversation with Gregory Bovino, who oversees the Border Patrol’s unit in El Centro, a border city situated 600 miles south of Sacramento. Bovino intended to carry out an immigration operation in Sacramento and asked Beckwith whom to reach out to if his officers encountered any aggression, as reported by the Times, citing Beckwith.
Beckwith informed Bovino that immigration agents were restricted from detaining people at random in her district, which lies north of Bakersfield. This instruction was based on a federal court order issued in April that prohibits the agency from detaining individuals without reasonable suspicion. Although the US Supreme Court recently overturned a comparable court order in Los Angeles.
In a 10:57 AM email on July 15, Beckwith reiterated her directiveness, emphasizing the need for “compliance with court orders and the constitution.” Less than six hours later, with her work computer and cellphone no longer operational, she received a termination notification sent to her personal email account.
Two days after, Bovino went ahead with his immigration operation at a Sacramento Home Depot.
“There is no such thing as a sanctuary city,” Bovino said in a video posted from the California state capitol building.
“The former acting US attorney’s email suggesting that the United States Border Patrol does not ALWAYS abide by the constitution revealed a prejudice against law enforcement,” Bovino said in a statement to The New York Times. “The Supreme Court’s ruling is proof that the Border Patrol follows the constitution along with the Fourth Amendment.”
On September 8, the Supreme Court decided that federal immigration agents have the authority to detain individuals based solely on race, language, or occupation, thus reversing the ruling of a Los Angeles judge who had previously ordered a halt to broad-scale raids.
Beckwith’s dismissal falls within a broader pattern of federal terminations, including those of prosecutors who refused to align with the president’s policies. Last week, US attorney Erik Siebert stepped down amidst significant pressure, and Trump promptly replaced him with his special assistant Lindsey Halligan subsequent to urging his attorney general Pam Bondi to do so via a now-deleted social media post.
Siebert had been in charge of investigations involving Letitia James and James Comey. According to the Times, Beckwith has appealed her termination.
“I’m an American who cares about her country,” Beckwith stated to the paper. “We have to stand up and demand that the laws are upheld.”
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/26/trump-fires-prosecutor-sacramento
