Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images
A federal judge officially dismissed the pending corruption charges against Eric Adams in an unsurprising but big win for the long-embattled mayor, whose public-approval ratings have plummeted after being indicted by the government last year.
In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Dale Ho acknowledged that both Adams and the Justice Department were aligned in their requests to dismiss the case, concluding that the court lacks the power to force the government to prosecute a case if it doesn’t wish to. “A court cannot force the Department of Justice to prosecute a defendant. That is by design. In our constitutional system of separation of powers, a court’s role in a criminal case is to preside over the matter — not to decide whether the defendant should be prosecuted,” he wrote.
But in a notable break with the federal government, Ho moved to dismiss the indictment “with prejudice,” which removes the Trump administration’s ability to revive the charges in the future if it so chooses. The judge stated bluntly that his action ensures that the charges “cannot be used as leverage” over the mayor or New York City, addressing a concern held by many that the White House could choose to hold the case over Adams in exchange for support for President Trump’s agenda.
“Dismissing the case without prejudice would create the unavoidable perception that the Mayor’s freedom depends on his ability to carry out the immigration enforcement priorities of the administration, and that he might be more beholden to the demands of the federal government than to the wishes of his own constituents,” Ho wrote.
Though the judge largely granted the Justice Department’s request, Ho dismantled its reasoning for the dismissal, writing that its argument that the case held the appearance of “impropriety” was “unsupported by any objective evidence.”
Ho also stated his belief that some of the arguments against dismissal had merit, writing that Adams’s ability to assist with federal immigration actions was not impaired as argued by the Justice Department. The judge noted that, in contrast, the mayor did take immigration enforcement actions in line with the Trump administration’s political views. “Everything here smacks of a bargain: dismissal of the Indictment in exchange for immigration policy concessions,” he wrote.
Ho’s ruling marks the end of an ongoing saga that took a new turn following Trump’s return to the White House. Under new leadership, the Justice Department moved to dismiss the case against Adams, directing Manhattan prosecutors to do so. But the order had a cascading effect, as Danielle Sassoon, the interim U.S. attorney, stepped down from her role, likening the dismissal to a “quid pro quo” between Adams and the new administration. Multiple prosecutors soon followed suit, similarly protesting the directive.
Last September, federal prosecutors in Manhattan accused Adams of knowingly soliciting illegal campaign contributions from foreign nationals in exchange for luxury travel perks. Adams has long professed his innocence in the matter and rebuffed calls for him to step down or drop his long-shot bid for reelection.
