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The region will have a new top federal prosecutor after Monday’s inauguration of Donald Trump — and the work of the U.S. attorney’s office often shifts to reflect what the new administration prioritizes in its agenda.
Scott Brady, the Western District of Pennsylvania’s former U.S. attorney and first-term Trump pick, anticipates the next U.S. attorney for the region will target similar areas to those he did in his time: violent crime, gangs, and drug trafficking organizations. He also prioritized establishing good relationships with state and local law enforcement.
“I think you're going to see the same thing,” Brady said. “I think you're going to see that playbook of violent crime … They're going to prioritize cartel activity, drug trafficking activity, fentanyl, any opioids, opioid trafficking, gang activity. I think there will be an uptick in prosecution of illegal immigration.”
Mary Beth Buchanan, appointed by then-President George W. Bush, said U.S. attorneys focus on local needs but must balance that with the national priorities.
“You have to look at what's going on in your own district and find a way to address those things,” she said. “But you also have to be cognizant of the national priorities that the administration expects. Every U.S. attorney's going to find a way to devote some attention to address those national priorities.”
There are 93 U.S. attorneys who serve in court districts throughout the country, typically for as long as the administration that appointed them. Eric Olshan, appointed under President Joe Biden, announced Wednesday he will step down just prior to Trump’s inauguration on Monday.
It’s customary for attorneys installed by a previous administration to leave — and it takes several months for a new top prosecutor to step in.
The Senate must confirm nominees before they are sworn in, and Brady anticipates it will take “at least 10 months” for a new Western District attorney to be sworn in. Brady’s nomination was announced in September 2017 after a lengthy vetting process. He wasn’t sworn in until December.
While it’s a political appointment by the president, Brady stressed it’s not a job inherently ruled by politics.
“The mission of the office, the way the office is managed, is absolutely apolitical,” he said.
The U.S. attorney has a large amount of control over how the office addresses crime that touches federal law. For example, they may assemble a task force or conduct community outreach to address specific problems in the community.
“You have a lot of discretion about what you do and what you don't do, and it's very hard for even Washington, D.C., to force you to do something,” said Fred Thieman, who also served as a U.S. attorney during the Clinton administration.
And for Western Pennsylvania, former Acting U.S. Attorney Stephen Kaufman said there isn’t a specific type of crime the district experiences that dominates the office’s time.
“There's no overwhelming crime problem here in Western Pennsylvania that really takes an undue share of the resources,” Kaufman said. "The office is really able to address the full gamut of criminal issues.”
The next U.S. attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania will be the chief federal prosecutor for about 40% of the state, from west of Altoona, up to the New York border and down to the West Virginia border. They will oversee a staff of around 130 prosecutors, civil litigators, and staff spread across three offices in Pittsburgh, Erie, and Johnstown.
The selection process for a candidate is a model of “norms rather than laws,” said Harry Litman, who served as U.S. attorney under then-President Bill Clinton. While it may vary, Pennsylvania has traditionally followed an approach where both senators make a recommendation to the president, but a senator of the incoming president’s party would typically have more influence.
Newly elected Republican U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick will likely assemble a panel to determine his recommendation to the president, Brady said.
The recommendation would then be brought to U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, a Democrat, who would have the option to object. That was the process Brady’s nomination followed with then-senators Pat Toomey and Bob Casey.
“I’m not certain, but I expect it will be very similar because this is just the way it's always been done in Pennsylvania,” Brady said.
As for what the senators and president will be looking for in a candidate, they often have extensive backgrounds in criminal law, either as a prosecutor, defense attorney, or both, Thieman said. They’re also often former assistant U.S. attorneys.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy Rivetti will serve as acting U.S. attorney until Trump’s pick is sworn in, according to a news release.
The acting U.S. attorney is typically selected from within the office itself, Thieman said. Kaufman, who held the role between Brady’s departure and former U.S. Attorney Cindy Chung’s confirmation, was first assistant U.S. attorney to Brady.
Acting attorneys rarely make significant changes to policy or procedure, Kaufman said.
And while the new top federal prosecutor will have hiring power in the office, they inherit the staff of the previous attorney.
“There's less change than you would think from administration to administration,” said Mike Comber, former assistant U.S. attorney for 13 years. “What does change are the various priorities handed down from the president to the attorney general to the presidentially appointed U.S. attorney that do have influence on a smaller percentage, but a meaningful percentage, of the work the office does.”
