This story was produced as part of the Colorado Capitol News Alliance. It first appeared at cpr.org.
The office of the top federal prosecutor in Colorado has avoided the drama that has taken place in other states.
Peter McNeilly, a prosecutor at the Colorado U.S. Attorney’s Office since 2014, was quietly, permanently appointed to the top job there by the federal court in a one-sentence order issued by Chief United States District Judge Philip Brimmer.
McNeilly’s permanent appointment started on Oct. 14, 2025, and he can remain in the job until he resigns, is removed or President Donald Trump, or any other president, appoints a replacement and the Senate confirms the appointment. All that is avoided in Colorado for now.
“I am pleased and humbled that the district court has appointed me to continue in the role of U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado,” McNeilly said in an email to CPR News. “It is the honor of my career to be trusted to lead the exceptional attorneys and staff in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, who carry out the federal government’s work in keeping Colorado safe.”
Trump has avoided nominating a U.S. Attorney in Colorado. He’s made similar decisions in other states with two Democrats as senators. Traditionally, the senators’ offices send recommendations to the White House with various candidates for U.S. Attorney from their state, and whoever the president picks needs to be voted on by the U.S. Senate in a simple majority.
But no appointment has been made in Colorado.
Instead, Pam Bondi appointed McNeilly as an interim U.S. attorney in June.
By law, he served in this interim role for 120 days. At the end of that time, Trump could have appointed him permanently, which then would require a Senate confirmation, or the federal bench could appoint him to the job. That’s what happened on Oct. 1.
In New Jersey, which also has two Democratic U.S. senators, Trump tried to use the interim appointment to slide one of his personal attorneys into the U.S. attorney role there.
The federal bench said no to a permanent appointment there, though.
