By Solomon 
The U.S. Justice Department has decided to drop the corruption case against New York Mayor Eric Adams, even though several prosecutors quit in protest.
Adams had pleaded not guilty to fraud and bribery charges back in September. He strongly denies any claims that he tried to get the case dismissed in exchange for supporting former President Donald Trump’s immigration policies.
The Justice Department’s request to drop the case is “without prejudice,” meaning they could reopen it later if they choose. This leaves a cloud over Adams as he gears up for re-election in November.
According to NBC, acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove offered leadership roles to government lawyers who agreed to file the motion to dismiss the case. However, the final decision still rests with a judge.
The move caused a major shake-up within the Southern District of New York. Several prosecutors who originally worked on the case resigned in protest. The latest to quit was Assistant U.S. Attorney Hagan Scotten, who made it clear he wanted nothing to do with dropping the charges. He called anyone who complied either a “fool” or a “coward.”
Scotten’s boss, acting U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon, also stepped down, along with multiple members of the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section in Washington, who refused to support the dismissal.
With pressure mounting, some are calling for Adams to step down, while others want New York Governor Kathy Hochul to remove him from office.
Adams Responds
Adams insists he never tried to strike a deal to get the charges dropped. “I want to be crystal clear with New Yorkers: I never offered—nor did anyone on my behalf—any trade of my authority as your mayor for an end to my case,” he said.
Meanwhile, Trump commented on the case, saying he didn’t know much about it but felt it seemed “very political” given the timing before Adams’ re-election. He also dismissed concerns about prosecutors quitting, claiming they were leftovers from the previous administration.
Sassoon, a Republican appointed by Trump, has a strong legal background, having graduated from Yale Law School and being a part of the conservative Federalist Society. She previously led the high-profile fraud case against crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried. Scotten, also highly credentialed, is a decorated U.S. Army veteran and former clerk for Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts.
Chad Mizelle, the Justice Department’s chief of staff, defended the decision to drop the charges, calling it proof that the DOJ is refocusing on real criminal cases instead of “politically motivated witch hunts.” He also criticized the prosecutors who resigned, saying they had “ulterior motives” and didn’t belong in the DOJ.
A Fiery Resignation
Bove justified the decision by saying that the case was preventing Adams from focusing on illegal immigration and violent crime.
Scotten, however, wasn’t having it. In a fiery resignation letter, which quickly went viral, he slammed the Justice Department for trying to use legal pressure to push a political agenda.
“No system of liberty can allow the government to use the carrot of dismissing charges, or the stick of threatening to bring them again, to induce an elected official to support its policy objectives,” he wrote.
He made it clear he wouldn’t be the one to file the motion, saying, “If no lawyer within earshot of the President is willing to give him that advice, then I expect you will eventually find someone who is enough of a fool, or enough of a coward, to file your motion. But it was never going to be me.”
Meanwhile, Governor Hochul called the Justice Department’s actions “unbelievably unprecedented.” While she acknowledged the seriousness of the allegations against Adams, she refused to make a “knee-jerk, politically motivated” decision on removing him.
The Justice Department itself has been in turmoil since Trump took office, with multiple high-ranking officials being fired, demoted, or reassigned as part of a broad shakeup.