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Maurene Comey, who helped prosecute Jeffrey Epstein and Sean Combs, was dismissed without a detailed explanation. She is the daughter of James B. Comey, a longtime adversary of President Trump.
July 17, 2025, 11:16 a.m. ET
Maurene Comey, a career federal prosecutor who worked on the Jeffrey Epstein case and was abruptly fired by the Trump administration this week, warned her colleagues Thursday about the chilling effect such firings could have on their work.
“If a career prosecutor can be fired without reason, fear may seep into the decisions of those who remain,” she wrote in an email. “Do not let that happen.”
She called fear “the tool of a tyrant, wielded to suppress independent thought.”
Ms. Comey, who is the daughter of James B. Comey, the former F.B.I. director and an adversary of President Trump, was also the lead prosecutor in the recent trial of Sean Combs, the hip-hop entrepreneur who was acquitted of the most serious charges he faced earlier this month.
Ms. Comey was told of her firing Wednesday in a letter that cited Article II of the Constitution, which describes the powers of the president, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
William K. Rashbaum is a Times reporter covering municipal and political corruption, the courts and broader law enforcement topics in New York.
Jonah E. Bromwich covers criminal justice in the New York region for The Times. He is focused on political influence and its effect on the rule of law in the area's federal and state courts.
Benjamin Weiser is a Times reporter covering the federal courts and U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan, and the justice system more broadly.
