The federal judge overseeing the corruption case against New York City Democratic Mayor Eric Adams said he needs time to consider the Justice Department’s decision to drop the corruption charges.
U.S. District Judge Dale Ho said Wednesday at a hearing in Manhattan that it was not in “anyone’s interest” for the case to “drag on,” but he still needs to evaluate the arguments for dropping the case. The DOJ argued that the prosecution brought by the Biden administration was politically motivated and could interfere with the upcoming NYC mayoral election in November.
“I’m not going to shoot from the hip right here on the bench,” Ho said. “I want to make sure that I consider everything appropriate, and that I don’t consider anything inappropriate, and make a reasoned decision that is mindful of my role, which I understand here is quite narrow.”
Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove told Ho that the DOJ was choosing to exercise its prosecutorial discretion to drop the case over concerns about the weaponization of government.
“What is set forth here is my conclusion that this case, as a matter of prosecutorial discretion, should not proceed because it reflects, at minimum, appearances of impropriety that give cause for concern about abuse of the criminal justice process,” he said.
This was in line with a DOJ briefing on Tuesday where senior officials said the department would argue that the Biden administration weaponized the government to prosecute Adams. One compared the prosecution of Adams to the case that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg brought against President Donald Trump.
Ho also asked about allegations that had been floated, such as a quid pro quo between Adams and the DOJ before the move to drop the case. Both the DOJ and Adams have said this is false, and there was no agreement.
“It never happened,” attorney Alex Spiro, who represents Adams, said on Wednesday, adding that he would be willing to testify to the statement.
The DOJ’s decision to drop the case has caused drama within its Southern District of New York office, with publicized resignation letters from prosecutors over the decision. Bove said after the hearing on Wednesday that staffers who are not in line with the DOJ’s priorities should quit.
“For those at the Department who are with me in those battles and understand that there are no separate sovereigns in this Executive Branch, we’re going to do great things to make America safe again,” he said. “For those who do not support our critical mission, I understand there are templates for resignation letters available on the websites of the New York Times and CNN.”
