In a court appearance Wednesday, acting U.S. Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove denied that dropping the bribery case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams was part of a “quid pro quo” arrangement.
Both Bove and Adams appeared in court in New York City for a conference with the federal judge who must approve the Department of Justice’s motion to dismiss Adams’ criminal case.
District Judge Dale Ho did not immediately make a decision during the hearing regarding whether to grant the motion to dismiss.
“I’m not going to shoot from the hip from the bench,” Ho said.
Speaking before the judge, Bove cast his decision to drop the charges against Adams as a “straightforward exercise of prosecutorial discretion” that was made, in this case, because the indictment has meant Mayor Adams cannot communicate with federal authorities responsible for immigration enforcement.
Bove said the case should be dismissed because “the continuation of this prosecution is interfering with national security and immigration enforcement. The mayor cannot communicate with federal authorities responsible for immigration enforcement, such as the U.S. Attorney’s office.”
“There is no quid pro quo,” Bove said, adding that even if there were, it would not be grounds for the judge to deny the motion to dismiss the case.
“There’s no legal basis to question the things I said in that motion,” Bove said.
Ho said he summoned Adams and Bove to court “because I have a few questions,” further noting that the government’s motion to dismiss the mayor’s corruption case brought the parties together in a “somewhat unusual situation.”
The judge conceded that he is well aware he has “very little discretion here,” but said “the court does have a limited role to play.”
At one point, Ho asked about the implications the motion to dismiss might have on other public officials. Would it apply, for example, to a police commissioner?
“Yes,” Bove answered.
“What about the governor of a border state?” Ho asked.
“Yes, absolutely,” Bove responded.
Adams affirmed that he is consenting to the motion to dismiss the indictment without prejudice, meaning the case could be reconstituted in the future.
“Yes I understand, judge. I haven’t committed a crime,” Adams said.
At the conclusion of the hearing, Ho let out a deep sigh as he again acknowledged his “limited” role in contemplating a government’s motion to dismiss.
Bove said the agreement between the government and the mayor does not stop the FBI from taking additional steps to investigate Adams. However, Bove said, “I don’t have any plans” to bring back the case in the future.
A written opinion from Ho will be forthcoming, though it’s unknown when.
Adams previously pleaded not guilty to a five-count indictment that accused him of accepting years of luxury travel gifts in exchange for, among other things, allegedly persuading the New York City Fire Department to approve the opening of the new Turkish consulate in Manhattan despite the lingering safety concerns of inspectors.
After the Justice Department moved on Feb. 10 to drop the case against Adams, U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon and six other federal prosecutors resigned in protest.
On Monday, four deputy mayors in Adams’ administration also resigned.
