Court-appointed lawyer tells judge to drop Eric Adams corruption case permanently 

MANHATTAN (CN) — A court-appointed attorney on Friday told the federal judge overseeing the corruption charges of Democratic New York City Mayor Eric Adams that the case should be dismissed with prejudice, refuting the Department of Justice’s move to dismiss but keep the option open to re-indict in the future.

“All roads here — including the same separation-of-powers principles that constrain the court’s options — lead to dismissal with prejudice,” Paul Clement wrote in a highly awaited amicus brief filed Friday.

U.S. District Judge Dale Ho, a Joe Biden appointee in the Southern District of New York, appointed Clement, a former U.S. Solicitor General, as an amicus in February to help the court navigate an unusual situation in which the Department of Justice seeks to ice its probe of the Adams administration just weeks before jury selection was set to begin.

The trial has since been paused indefinitely, but Ho has appeared hesitant to let the federal government grant the Justice Department’s request amid concerns of a quid pro quo between Adams and the Trump administration. Those worries prompted at least seven federal prosecutors to resign rather than follow through with the Justice Department’s order to drop the case.

The Justice Department is looking to dismiss the charges without prejudice — a move that former prosecutors have panned as a way for the Trump administration to “dangle prosecution” over Adams’ head to keep him in line with their supposed agreement.

Clement referenced that issue in his brief on Friday, arguing that dismissing the case without prejudice could interfere with a defendant’s liberty.

“A dismissal without prejudice creates a palpable sense that the prosecution outlined in the indictment and approved by a grand jury could be renewed, a prospect that hangs like the proverbial Sword of Damocles over the accused,” Clement wrote.

That risk is exacerbated when prosecuting a public official, Clement added.

“There is an inherent risk that once an indictment has been procured, the prospect of reindictment could create the appearance, if not the reality, that the actions of a public official are being driven by concerns about staying in the good graces of the federal executive, rather than the best interests of his constituents,” he argued.

Many had speculated that Clement might argue in favor of keeping the case alive. To the contrary, he claimed that prosecuting a case like this is a “core executive function” and not one that the court has the authority to supplement with a private prosecutor.

“The court should dismiss the indictment with prejudice,” Clement wrote.

Judge Ho has not yet ruled on the future of the case. Adams’ attorney didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

The Justice Department hasn’t explicitly responded to Clement’s brief. But it did file a memo of its own Friday night in support of its efforts to dismiss, in which it claimed that it is most common for courts to dismiss without prejudice in these instances.

“The department does not believe that a departure from this default rule is necessary in this case,” the department argued in a 21-page filing.

Adams made his own move to dismiss the federal charges with prejudice last month.

The Justice Department’s dismissal order came from Emil Bove, who, until Wednesday, was the department’s acting No. 2 official. Bove sent a memo to federal prosecutors on Feb. 10 demanding they dismiss the charges against Adams “as soon as practicable.” He claimed that the charges unduly interfered with Adams’ ongoing reelection campaign and his ability to handle the immigration crisis in New York City.

But ensuing resignation letters from prosecutors suggested that Adams’ attorneys met with Bove in January and discussed “what amounted to a quid pro quo,” in which Adams would agree to cooperate with the Trump administration’s deportation efforts in exchange for his case being dismissed.

The ordeal has amplified calls for Adams to resign, particularly from lawmakers within his own party who are suspicious of the mayor’s supposed newfound allegiance to President Donald Trump and the Republican agenda.

Adams and the Justice Department have denied the presence of a quid pro quo and downplayed the rebuked allegations from resigning prosecutors as falsehoods.

Federal prosecutors in September 2024 slapped Adams with a five-count indictment, accusing the former NYPD captain of taking luxury perks and illegal campaign contributions from Turkish nationals in exchange for political influence in New York City.

Adams is also accused of defrauding a city program that matches small-dollar donations during his mayoral campaign and has been barred from using the program again during his reelection efforts.

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