1 of 2 | Acting Southern District of New York U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon and two other federal prosecutors resigned after being told to drop the federal case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Photo by the U.S. Department of Justice
Feb. 13 (UPI) — The acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York and two others resigned after the Justice Department told them to drop the case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
Acting U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon announced her resignation on Thursday, NBC News, CNN and the New York Daily News reported. Two senior federal prosecutors also have resigned.
The federal prosecutors resigned after acting U.S. Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove on Monday ordered the federal prosecutors to end the corruption case against Adams due to its interference with his ability to address illegal immigration and violent crime.
Sasson on Wednesday wrote Attorney General Pam Bondi to express her concerns about being told to end the federal case.
“Adams’ attorneys repeatedly urged what amounted to a quid pro quo, indicating that Adams would be in a position to assist with Department’s enforcement priorities only if the indictment were dismissed,” Sassoon said in the letter to Bondi, NBC News reported.
“Mr. Bove admonished a member of my team who took notes during that meeting and directed the collection of those notes at the meeting’s conclusion,” she added.
Adams’ attorney Alex Spiro in a statement called the claim of a quid pro quo a “total lie” and said Adams offered nothing and the DOJ asked for nothing to drop the case.
The DOJ tried to transfer the case to its Public Integrity Section that oversees federal corruption cases against public officials, but two PIS prosecutors resigned after refusing to drop the case against Adams.
Those prosecutors are John Keller, who was the acting head of PIS, and Kevin Driscoll, who was the acting head of the PIS’s criminal section.
Adams in 2024 pleaded not guilty to wire fraud and fraud charges filed by the DOJ after obtaining an indictment accusing Adams of illegal acts dating back to 2014, when he was the president of the Brooklyn Borough.
The DOJ accused Adams of accepting travel benefits from an official in Turkey in exchange for allegedly encouraging York City Fire Department officials to approve permits for a Turkish consular building that failed a fire safety inspection.
Adams has claimed the case against him was retaliation against him by the Biden administration for criticizing its handling of migrant arrivals in New York City.