US DOJ drops corruption charges against NYC Mayor Eric Adams amid prosecutor resignations News
ajay_suresh, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
US DOJ drops corruption charges against NYC Mayor Eric Adams amid prosecutor resignations

US Department of Justice (DOJ) officials filed a motion on Friday to dismiss corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams. This brings an abrupt end to a tense legal standoff that had stretched on for days.

The DOJ contended that the dismissal was necessary because the prosecution presented a risk of interference with the New York City elections in 2025. The DOJ also alleged that the prosecution would prevent Adams from performing his duty as the mayor, posing “unacceptable threats to public safety, national security, and related federal immigration initiatives and policies.”

Acting US Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove III, the official overseeing the case, initially directed Manhattan federal prosecutors to seek the dismissal of corruption charges against Mayor Eric Adams. However, the head of the Manhattan office, Danielle R. Sassoon refused to comply, choosing instead to resign in protest. Her departure set off a wave of resignations, with at least six other prosecutors in New York and Washington following suit. In her resignation letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Sassoon said, she “remain[ed] baffled by the rushed and superficial process by which this decision was reached,” and likened it to a “quid pro quo.”

A day later, lead prosecutor Hagan Scotten sent his resignation letter to Emil Bove III, condemning the decision to drop the case against Mayor Eric Adams. “Any assistant US attorney would know that our laws and traditions do not allow using the prosecutorial power to influence other citizens, much less elected officials, in this way,” Scotten wrote.

The corruption charges against Mayor Eric Adams were filed in September by US Attorney Damian Williams, who led the office during the Biden administration. Adams has claimed he was unfairly targeted for his outspoken criticism of the administration’s handling of the migrant crisis. The Southern District of New York has firmly rejected this claim, pointing out that the investigation was underway before Adams made those remarks.

President Donald Trump slammed the prosecution, saying Adams had been “treated pretty unfairly.” On the other hand, the resigning prosecutors who protested against the dismissal claimed that the charges were being dropped as part of a deal for Adams to back President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda.

Cited in the dismissal motion, the federal immigration policies refer to the executive order signed by President Trump on January 20, 2025. The controversial order is now facing challenge in court, allegedly violating migrants’ right to asylum. The federal policy also faces pushback from states. For instance, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson launched a “Know Your Rights” campaign to inform city residents of their legal protections against federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

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