Adams Asks Judge to Speed Up Decision on Dropping Corruption Charges
The New York Times
The federal government wants the bribery and fraud charges against New York’s mayor to be dropped so he can help President Trump’s deportation program. A judge is considering the matter as the mayoral race heats up.
A lawyer for Mayor Eric Adams of New York urged a Manhattan judge on Monday to promptly rule on a pending motion from the Justice Department to dismiss federal corruption charges against the mayor.
The lawyer, Alex Spiro, cited a Thursday deadline for Mr. Adams to file required petitions to appear on the mayoral primary ballot. Since that deadline is “just days away,” he wrote, “we respectfully urge the court to issue its decision as soon as practicable.”
Mr. Spiro noted that the dismissal motion had been pending before the judge, Dale E. Ho of Federal District Court, since mid-February. He quoted the judge’s own words at a recent court hearing, when he said, “it’s not in anyone’s interest here for this to drag on.”
The charges against Mr. Adams, which include bribery, fraud and other counts, and the Justice Department’s efforts to have them dropped, have led to turmoil in City Hall and hurt Mr. Adams’s chances of winning a second term.
The mayor had pleaded not guilty and was scheduled for trial on April 21. Under the Biden administration, the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office had pursued the case aggressively. But after President Trump was elected, his administration reversed course, asking Judge Ho to dismiss the case without prejudice, meaning the charges could be reinstated.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
