Ryan Lucas

Updated at 7:17 p.m. ET

President Trump has removed Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, from office, ending the tenure of a top Justice Department official whose office has overseen the prosecutions of several of the president's associates.

Attorney General William Barr announced the termination Saturday, less than a day after initially suggesting that Berman was resigning — only to be contradicted by Berman himself.

A federal appeals court appeared skeptical Friday of Michael Flynn's bid to force a judge to dismiss his case after the Justice Department sought to abandon the prosecution.

A three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit considered Flynn's case after years of twists and turns that began in the first days of President Trump's administration.

A federal appeals court will hear arguments Friday on Michael Flynn's bid to force a lower court to dismiss the Justice Department's criminal case against the former national security adviser.

The hearing before a three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia is the latest front in the long-running legal case against Flynn, who pleaded guilty in 2017 to lying to the FBI about his contacts with the Russian ambassador.

U.S. Attorney General William Barr has repeatedly blamed anti-fascist activists for the violence that has erupted during demonstrations over George Floyd's death, but federal court records show no sign of so-called antifa links so far in cases brought by the Justice Department.

NPR has reviewed court documents of 51 individuals facing federal charges in connection with the unrest. As of Tuesday morning, none is alleged to have links to the antifa movement.

Attorney General William Barr is sending specialized teams of federal agents to help control protests in Washington, D.C., and Miami, and the FBI is setting up command posts in cities across the country as demonstrations against George Floyd's death move into a second week.

The Justice Department has closed investigations into stock sales made by three senators shortly before financial markets tanked because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to an individual familiar with the matter.

Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.; Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga.; and James Inhofe, R-Okla., were notified of the decision on Tuesday. The Justice Department's insider-trading investigation into another senator, North Carolina Republican Richard Burr, remains open, the individual said.

The Senate is expected to take up three domestic surveillance tools used in national security investigations this week, reviving debate over the provisions two months after letting them expire.

The tussle over renewing the authorities is part of a larger political fight over the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, that dates back years but became a headliner during the Russia investigation — even though the tools that expired are not linked to that probe.

Updated at 8:27 p.m. ET

The Justice Department is dropping its case against President Trump's first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russia's then-ambassador to the United States.

The about-face by the department brings to a close the long-running case against Flynn brought by former special counsel Robert Mueller during the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

A 37 year-old district court judge nominated for a seat on the powerful Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit appeared all but certain to be confirmed after a hearing Wednesday — over Democrats' objections.

The nominee, Justin Walker, was hand picked by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., for the D.C. Circuit court, which is often called the second most important court in the country.

Updated at 3:02 p.m. ET

The coronavirus pandemic has brought out the good side of many Americans but certainly not all Americans. Officials say that fraud related to COVID-19 — such as hoarding equipment, price gouging and hawking fake treatments — are spreading as the country wrestles with the outbreak.

"It's a perfect ecosystem for somebody like a fraudster to operate in," said Craig Carpenito, the U.S. attorney for New Jersey and the head of the Justice Department's COVID-19 price gouging and hoarding task force.

President Trump's former lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, is to be released early from federal prison and moved to home confinement because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 to a range of financial and campaign finance crimes, as well as lying to Congress.

He is currently serving a three-year sentence at the federal correctional institution in Otisville, N.Y.