As DOJ drops corruption charges against NYC’s mayor, critics see improper influence

New York City Mayor Eric Adams says the Trump administration’s move to drop federal bribery and corruption charges against him brings to an end what Adams described as a “cruel episode.”

“This has been the most difficult fifteen months of my life,” Adams said during a brief, scripted address, broadcast Tuesday on social media. He didn’t take questions but once again described the charges as unfair and improper.

“I never broke the law and I never would. I would never put any personal benefit above my solemn responsibility as your mayor,” Adams said. “I never asked anyone to break the law on my behalf or on behalf of my campaign. I absolutely never traded my power as an elected official for any personal benefit.”

A Justice Department memo made public on Monday calls for federal charges to be shelved “without prejudice.” That means in theory the investigation could resume at some point in the future.

“The Justice Department has reached this conclusion without assessing the strength of the evidence or the legal theories on which the case is based,” the letter reads.

Adams has long said he’s innocent of any criminal wrongdoing. In court filings, his attorneys accused U.S. attorneys of mishandling the case, in part by leaking sensitive and privileged information to the media.

The indictment filed last September in federal court in Manhattan alleged Adams used his official positions with New York City to leverage “illegal campaign contributions and luxury travel.”

U.S. attorneys said the corrupt practices continued for nearly a decade and often included soliciting “benefits” from foreign nationals and foreign governments.

The charges included conspiracy to receive campaign contributions from foreign nationals, wire fraud, bribery and soliciting and accepting a bribe.

Then-U.S. Attorney Damian Williams issued a statement at the time saying “FBI and DOJ will continue to pursue corruption anywhere in this city, especially when that corruption takes the form of illegal foreign interference on our democratic system.” Williams left the DOJ in November after Trump’s election.

The Justice Department memo calling for charges against Adams to be dropped doesn’t question the facts or merits of the case.

Instead it lays out two political reasons for the corruption case to be dropped. First, it echoes an unsubstantiated claim that former President Joe Biden and his administration may have used the prosecution to punish Adams, a fellow Democrat, for publicly criticizing Biden’s immigration policies.

“It cannot be ignored that Mayor Adams criticized the prior administration’s immigration policies before the charges were filed, and the former U.S. Attorney’s public actions created appearances of impropriety,” the memo said.

No evidence of the Biden team interfering in DOJ prosecutorial decisions was offered to support that assertion. In the memo, DOJ officials also said the case, if allowed to move forward, would hinder Adams from devoting his full attention to one of Trump’s top policy initiatives: curbing “illegal immigration and violent crime” in New York City.

Adams has signaled growing openness to partnering with Trump administration officials on immigration enforcement in the city and has reportedly ordered NYC officials to avoid criticizing Trump or his policies.

Some critics, including city and state officials running against Adams in the mayor’s race, condemned the DOJ move to drop charges and voiced alarm at growing ties between Adams and the Trump team.

Posting on social media, New York City comptroller Brad Lander blasted what he called “Adams’ effort to get a pardon for his pay-to-play charges.”

“Eric Adams sold out New Yorkers to buy his own freedom,” wrote New York state Sen. Jessica Ramos on X. “Donald Trump may think this buys him access to terrorize our communities, but New Yorkers always stand up for one another.”

It’s unclear how this move by the DOJ will affect investigations and criminal cases against a wide array of Adams’ political allies, donors and former members of his administrations.

Some charges, dating back as far as 2023, were filed by local prosecutors. In other instances, individuals with ties to Adams have already pleaded guilty to a variety of charges.

Speaking Tuesday, Adams acknowledged the DOJ indictment had harmed his public reputation.

“Despite the fact I am no longer facing legal questions, I understand many New Yorkers still question my character. I know I must continue to regain your trust,” he said.