Maeve Bidonde, Staff Writer
On Monday, Feb. 17, the Department of Justice gave an order to federal prosecutors to drop the charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams issued by the DOJ. According to the Associated Press, the reason for this order is because the charges interfere with Mayor Adams’ ability to help President Trump’s illegal immigration initiatives. Previously the DOJ investigated any government officials regardless of position, including President Trump during his first term in office. But after a turn of events and Mayor Adams seemingly switching sides to align himself with the president, people now feel their mayor is an untrustworthy figure.
The controversial decision was met with resignations. At minimum eight federal prosecutors including Danielle Sassoon, the leading prosecutor on Mayor Adams’ case, have resigned in protest of the decision. Others have claimed that Mayor Adams made a deal with the Trump administration for leniency in exchange for backing up the illegal immigration policies in New York.
According to the AP, Adams backtracked on a promise to resist I.C.E to then wanting to instead work with them, ignoring the sanctuary city policies. Adams also made a public promise not to criticize President Trump, but had previously deemed President Trump’s policies to be abusive. Adams stands accused of taking illegal campaign funds and directing staffers to get donations from foreign entities.
According to the Washington Post, U.S. District Judge Dale E. Ho ended up asking U.S Solicitor General Paul Clement, who typically supports conservative political views in court, to give him advice about how to proceed with the situation at hand.
“Accomplishing the immigration objectives established by President Trump and the Attorney General is every bit as important—if not more so—as the objectives that the prior Administration pursued…” said in a memo released by the DOJ. The memo also gives instructions to “…take all steps within your power to cause MayorAdams’ security clearances to be restored.”
The other reason given for dismissing the charges is the case has negatively impacted Mayor Adams’ campaign for the 2025 Mayoral Election. Something the memo speaks on, allowing further investigations to take place only after the 2025 Mayoral Election this November. As of now, it is unknown if the memo will stand or be blocked from being enforced.
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