Source: YUKI IWAMURA / Getty
The Department of Justice has reportedly discussed dropping the federal charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams with Manhattan prosecutors.
According to reports, senior officials with the Department of Justice have discussed the future of the federal corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams and the possibility that the charges would be dropped outright. DOJ officials are slated to meet with prosecutors in Manhattan from the office of the Southern District of New York this week and with the legal defense team for Adams. The embattled mayor is slated to go on trial April 21 and has been in constant communication with President Donald Trump in recent weeks, including attending his inauguration and visiting him at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. Trump has publicly supported Adams, stating that he would “take a look” at a pardon for him in a press briefing last month.
Sources close to the discussions have framed them as preliminary. The Southern District of New York declined to comment – since Damian Williams stepped down last month, the office has been run by Danielle R. Sassoon, a veteran prosecutor appointed by Trump on an interim basis. Speculation has risen that the Justice Department is seeking a fast resolution to the matter before Trump’s picks for the SDNY and the U.S. Attorney General (Jay Clayton and Pamela Bondi, respectively) are confirmed. According to the New York Times, Sassoon is in a precarious position – if she were to drop the charges, it would allow Adams to say that the charges shouldn’t have been brought in the first place. If she refused, she could be forced to resign or be fired.
The news comes amid rumors that Adams, who until early Thursday (Jan. 30) was out of the public eye dealing with illness, would potentially accept a pardon and then resign. Adams’ lawyer, Alex Spiro (who also represents Trump crony and tech billionaire Elon Musk) dismissed that theory to reporters. “No, he’s innocent,” he said. The same sources claim that Shapiro intimated to the DOJ officials that Adams would hinder further immigration crackdowns in New York City if he were still under indictment. “That is a complete lie.” Shapiro said when asked about that conversation.
DOJ Discussed Dropping Charges Against Indicted Mayor Adams: Report
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