The Trump Administration has named a new top federal prosecutor in Chicago who will serve on a temporary basis starting April 7, bringing new leadership to an office that has been without it permanently for two years.The appointment of Andrew S. Boutros as interim U.S. attorney was made by Attorney General Pam Bondi. Boutros will soon take the reins from Acting U.S. Attorney Morris “Sonny” Pasqual, who’s been the temporary leader of the office ever since the March 2023 resignation of former U.S. Attorney John Lausch.The details of Boutros' appointment were confirmed by Joseph Fitzpatrick, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office. No additional public announcement was made by the Justice Department. Related Chicago U.S. Attorney John Lausch to leave office by early March Bondi’s interim appointment of Boutros allows him to serve for four months without confirmation by the Senate. Boutros did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.Boutros is co-chair of Government Investigations and White Collar Practice at Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP. He worked as a federal prosecutor in Chicago between 2008 and 2015, including in the Financial Crimes and Special Prosecutions Section. He’s set to return to the U.S. attorney’s office at a time of high anxiety, locally and in the Justice Department more broadly.Bondi made her appointment following a formal search for Chicago’s new top federal prosecutor, begun a month ago by U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood. The legislator wound up interviewing a variety of qualified candidates and sent a list of names to the White House for consideration, according to a source familiar with the process.However, Boutros’ name was not among them, the source said. If President Donald Trump ultimately nominates Boutros to serve permanently, that would be a break with tradition."The Northern District of Illinois plays a critical role in fighting crime and public corruption," LaHood said in a statement Friday. "The Trump Administration worked swiftly to appoint an interim U.S. attorney to help the people of Chicago and northern Illinois. I am confident this will address rising crime rates, support enforcement of our immigration laws, fight public corruption and restore faith in our justice system. I look forward to continuing to work with the administration on these vital issues as they work to permanently fill the vital U.S. attorney role."Permanent confirmation of Boutros as U.S. attorney would make him the second consecutive Trump pick to serve in that role. Former President Joe Biden never secured confirmation of his own choice to lead the office, April Perry. She is now a federal judge. April Perry speaks to the Senate Judiciary Committee July 31, 2024.Sen. Dick Durbin/YouTube Lausch served during Trump’s first term and was highly regarded in Chicago despite the Republican president’s deep unpopularity here. Boutros faces similar circumstances, but in far more turbulent times, especially when it comes to the fate of the Justice Department.Trump’s controversial 10 weeks in office have already led to high-profile resignations by Justice Department officials. While no such drama has played out in Chicago, many see Trump’s choice for U.S. attorney as key to the office’s future.Boutros is a 2001 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law who largely handled financial and drug crimes while serving as a federal prosecutor, including the case of online Silk Road drug dealer Cornelis Jan “SuperTrips” Slomp. Related World’s most prolific online drug dealer, ‘SuperTrips,’ gets 10 years Since leaving for private practice in the last decade, he’s defended clients or conducted internal investigations also dealing with embezzlement, trade secret theft, cryptocurrencies, bribery, kickback schemes and public corruption, according to his Shook, Hardy & Bacon biography.Now his job will be to guide a storied office that has come under increased scrutiny despite some high-profile victories. Many will be watching Boutros to see how he serves under a president who has made his distaste for the Justice Department very clear.Already, Trump has undone one of the most high-profile prosecutions in the office’s history by delivering a full and unconditional pardon to former Gov. Rod Blagojevich in February. Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich speaks to reporters before entering his home in Ravenswood in February when President Donald Trump pardoned the former governor. Pat Nabong/Sun-Times file Trump’s Justice Department also singled out Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and three other big-city mayors over claims that “schools in their respective cities may have failed to protect Jewish students from unlawful discrimination.”Johnson was one of four mayors summoned to testify about their cities’ sanctuary status before a U.S. House committee this month, as well. U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer, an Alabama Republican, accused Johnson and the other mayors during that hearing of committing a crime and said, “I don’t understand why we haven’t been discussing obstruction of justice.” Mayor Brandon Johnson responds to questions during a House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing with Sanctuary City Mayors on Capitol Hill.Rod Lamkey/AP Photos Prosecutors here secured the historic conviction in February of former Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan, who now faces sentencing in June. But indictments that resulted from that same probe have been complicated by recent rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court.The office recently lost one of the lead prosecutors in the Madigan case, Amarjeet Bhachu, who was a veteran of more than 20 years and served as chief of the Public Corruption and Organized Crime Section. And LaHood recently put a spotlight on a dramatic drop in local criminal filings as he announced his search for the new U.S. attorney. ...read more read less