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The Western District of Pennsylvania is one step closer to having its next step top federal prosecutor.
U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi appointed First Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy Rivetti to the position earlier this week. Rivetti was sworn in by a United States District Court judge but must be confirmed by the Senate.
Rivetti has led the office since the resignation of U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan in January 2025. It’s customary for an attorney appointed by a previous administration to step down. Rivetti served as Acting U.S. attorney until November. Acting U.S. attorneys serve under the federal Vacancies Reform Act, which generally limits acting service to 210 days, or up to 300 days during a presidential transition.
Since joining the U.S. Attorney’s in 1997, Rivetti has focused on investigating and prosecuting violent crime, such as large-scale drug trafficking organizations and firearms offenses. He co-led the multi-year investigation and prosecution of the perpetrator of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. Rivetti also served as Acting U.S. attorney from February to June 2023.
Pittsburgh-based criminal defense attorney Phil DiLucente has worked on several cases where Rivetti was the lead prosecutor.
“[Rivetti] is not only highly intelligent, he is also extremely seasoned,” DiLucente said. “He will continue to be a perfect fit for the office.”
DiLucente said he expects Rivetti to be confirmed by the Senate Judiciary Committee relatively quickly.
“I think it's going to be seamless,” DiLucente said. “It will be approved quite quickly in the Senate because he has been part of the office for so many years. He’s respected by not only fellow prosecutors, but also a criminal defense board.”
Traditionally, the selection for U.S. attorneys involves consultation with the state’s U.S. senators of the same political party as the president. Once nominated, candidates are reviewed by the Senate Judiciary Committee, which then forwards nominees to the full Senate for a confirmation vote.
However, President Donald Trump and his second administration have mainly appointed interim attorneys — at least 70 in total. Many were later confirmed by the Senate. By comparison, there were only eight interim attorneys during Trump’s first term.
In August, U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick’s communications team said it had been in touch with the White House Counsel’s office after narrowing down candidates for the next U.S. attorney for the Western District. McCormick’s office did not respond to requests for further comment.
University of Richmond law professor Carl Tobias said Attorney General Bondi’s appointment of Rivetti raises questions about the process.
“What is [Rivetti’s] actual title currently? Is he Interim or Acting U.S. Attorney again?” Tobias said. “Interim U.S. attorneys get 120 days [in office] and are appointed by the Attorney General, so that seems to be what happened here, but that’s not clearly stated.”
The Western District’s press office declined to comment further.
Tobias said Rivetti also needs to be officially nominated by President Trump. The White House’s nominations list has not been updated since January 13 and does not yet list Rivetti.
During President Trump’s second term, only 31 U.S. attorneys have been confirmed by the Senate, including David Metcalf for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Brian Miller was appointed interim U.S. attorney by Attorney General Bondi in late October. His 120-day term will expire in February.
Tobias said there could be legal challenges should Rivetti serve over 120 days in an interim U.S. attorney position. In New Jersey, President Trump’s interim pick, Alina Habba, continued serving after her 120-day term expired, prompting a court challenge. Habba ultimately resigned after an appeals court ruled she was unlawfully serving in the role. Other courts have ruled that appointments of U.S. attorneys in Nevada, California and Virginia violated federal law.
“We have just a lot of things that are not clear yet that haven’t really been challenged before, because administrations typically follow tradition of working with state senators,” Tobias said. “We’re just sitting here wondering what’s next, what’s the larger picture.”
Rivetti appears to be a candidate that President Trump would have picked during his first administration, said Tobias.
“A 1.0 sort of person could serve in a Democratic or Republican administration, and people would be happy,” Tobias said. “[Rivetti] is a longstanding prosecutor, has great experience and is likely to uphold the impartiality and independence that we expect from the leaders of this office.”
The Western District encompasses about 40% of the state, from west of Altoona to the New York border and down to the West Virginia border. The U.S. attorney oversees a staff of around 130 prosecutors, civil litigators, and other employees spread across three offices in Pittsburgh, Erie, and Johnstown.
Erin Yudt is a reporter with the Pittsburgh Media Partnership Newsroom, part of the Center for Media Innovation at Point Park University. She most recently was a multimedia content producer and digital reporter at WKBN in Youngstown and is a graduate of Point Park University. Reach her at erin.yudt@pointpark.edu.
The PMP Newsroom is a regional news service that focuses on government and enterprise reporting in southwestern Pennsylvania. Find out more information on foundation and corporate funders here.
Header image: The U.S. Federal Courthouse in Downtown Pittsburgh, one of three federal courthouses in Pennsylvania's Western District of Pennsylvania, on December 11, 2025. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy Rivetti was appointed U.S. Attorney by U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi earlier this week. Photo by Erin Yudt.
