- “Trump has fired the top federal prosecutor in Sacramento because she insisted on following the law.” – Gavin Newsom
DAVIS, CA – Michele Beckwith’s long career as a federal prosecutor came to an abrupt end in July when she insisted that Border Patrol agents comply with court-ordered restrictions on immigration raids. Her dismissal, first reported by The New York Times, has become a flashpoint in the broader conflict between President Trump’s administration and the independence of the Department of Justice.
Beckwith, who had served 15 years in the Eastern District of California prosecuting cases against terrorists, sex traffickers and members of the Aryan Brotherhood, was acting U.S. attorney in Sacramento when she told Gregory Bovino, the Border Patrol chief overseeing immigration operations in California, that his officers were prohibited from stopping people indiscriminately. Six hours later, her government phone and computer went dark. By 4:31 p.m., she received an email from a Trump aide stating that she had been fired, effective immediately.
“It’s unjust,” Beckwith said in an interview. “We have to stand up and insist the laws be followed.”
Her termination illustrates what legal experts call a breakdown of the traditional independence that U.S. attorneys are expected to maintain from political influence. The Times noted that her removal came as part of a pattern of ousters targeting prosecutors who refused to advance Trump’s political agenda.
Just last week, Trump fired a U.S. attorney in Virginia who determined there was insufficient evidence to indict former FBI Director James Comey. Within days, that prosecutor was replaced with a Trump loyalist who convinced a federal grand jury to indict Comey on two counts. The same week, Trump forced out New York Attorney General Letitia James, one of his most prominent critics, from a federally funded joint task force.
California Governor Gavin Newsom responded to Beckwith’s firing with sharp condemnation. “Trump has fired the top federal prosecutor in Sacramento because she insisted on following the law,” Newsom said. “WAKE UP, AMERICA. DEMOCRACY IS ON THE BRINK!”
Beckwith’s clash with Bovino was rooted in a January lawsuit filed by the ACLU after his agents conducted surprise raids in Bakersfield, arresting day laborers and farmworkers outside a Home Depot and in orchards. In April, U.S. District Court Judge Jennifer Thurston issued an injunction preventing Border Patrol from detaining people without probable cause. “You just can’t walk up to people with brown skin and say, ‘Give me your papers,’” she said.
Despite the ruling, Bovino called Beckwith on July 14 to say he was bringing his officers to Sacramento, about 600 miles from the Mexico border, and asked whom to notify if they were assaulted. Beckwith reminded him of the injunction. The following morning, she sent him an email reiterating that she expected compliance with court orders and the Constitution. By the end of the day, she was out of a job.
Two days later, Bovino himself appeared in Sacramento with agents, raiding a Home Depot parking lot and arresting at least eight people. Standing in front of the State Capitol with a holstered gun and tactical vest, he posted a video declaring, “Folks, there is no such thing as a sanctuary city. Whether it’s here in Sacramento or nationwide, we’re here, and we’re not going anywhere.”
In a statement, Bovino accused Beckwith of showing hostility toward law enforcement. “The former Acting US Attorney’s email suggesting that the United States Border Patrol does not ALWAYS abide by the Constitution revealed a bias against law enforcement,” he said.
Beckwith’s dismissal cleared the way for Trump’s allies to take control of the Sacramento office. Kimberly Sanchez, a Republican prosecutor from the district, temporarily replaced her. In August, Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Eric Grant, a longtime Trump ally who defended the administration in environmental cases, as interim U.S. attorney.
Legal scholars said the removal was highly unusual. “We still have a norm of prosecutorial independence and even-handedness and integrity at the federal level,” said Nina Mendelson, a University of Michigan law professor. “Political pressure to prosecute enemies or shield friends would not typically be considered cause for removal.”
Beckwith has appealed her firing, arguing that she could not be removed from her career position without cause or due process. She is seeking to have her record cleared, along with back pay and attorneys’ fees.
For Davis, where Beckwith lives with her family, the firing has hit especially close to home. She and her husband moved there in 2004, raising their children in the college town and volunteering at their school P.T.A. She emphasized that she has served under both Republican and Democratic presidents and rejected the notion that her actions were politically motivated.
“I’m an American who cares about her country,” she told the Times. “I’m a public servant. That is my calling.”
Her dismissal, alongside the firings in Virginia and elsewhere, points to a troubling pattern that critics say undermines the rule of law. For many in California and in her adopted hometown of Davis, Beckwith’s case is now emblematic of how national political power struggles are affecting local lives and institutions.
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Is this a case of Federal law takes precedence over state law under the Supremacy Clause?
More important is the local angle – a little foreshadowing – file this story away for future reference.