Senate Democrats Tell N.Y. State Bar To Investigate Trump’s Deputy AG For Dropping Eric Adams Charges
Key Facts
Senate Democrats filed a complaint Tuesday with New York’s attorney grievance committee expressing “grave concern” about Bove’s actions that “may constitute serious professional misconduct,” claiming the attorney had “abused his position” by pressuring prosecutors to drop Adams’ charges in order to benefit President Donald Trump.
Bove—who was formerly Trump’s personal attorney—directed prosecutors to drop charges against Adams in mid-February, writing in a memo that the move was not based on “the strength of the evidence or the legal theories on which the case is based,” but that the case was improperly brought by the Biden administration and “has unduly restricted Mayor Adams' ability to devote full attention and resources to the illegal immigration and violent crime.”
Then-U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon resigned rather than ask for the charges to be dismissed as Bove directed, and at least five other career prosecutors also left the DOJ before the agency was finally able to ask the court to dismiss the charges.
In letters announcing their resignations, Sassoon and lead Adams prosecutor Hagan Scotten disavowed Bove’s reasons for wanting the case to be dropped and suggested the decision was motivated by political bias, with Sassoon calling the request a “quid pro quo” in exchange for Adams’ helping Trump’s immigration plans and writing Bove “appears to concede” that Adams “should receive leniency for federal crimes solely because he occupies an important public position and can use that position to assist in the Administration's policy priorities.”
Senators argue Bove’s actions violate professional rules barring lawyers from “improperly influenc[ing]” public officials, “engaging in conduct that is prejudicial to the administration of justice,” instructing other lawyers to commit misconduct and committing “conduct that adversely reflects one’s fitness to be a lawyer.”
Bove claimed Sassoon was the one trying to commit “political weaponization” by trying to continue the case against Adams, which the senators argued also violates professional rules against dishonesty and fraud.
Chief Critic
The Justice Department has not yet responded to a request for comment. In his letter to Sassoon over her resignation, Bove claimed the prosecutor—a member of the conservative Federalist Society—was trying to “continue pursuing a politically motivated prosecution despite an express instruction to dismiss the case,” accusing Sassoon of “[losing] sight of the oath” she took at the DOJ “by suggesting that you retain discretion to interpret the Constitution in a manner inconsistent with the policies of a democratically elected President and a Senate-confirmed Attorney General.” Bove also put other prosecutors who had worked on the case on leave and transferred the case from the Southern District of New York to the main Justice Department, claiming the New York office “has demonstrated itself to be incapable of fairly and impartially reviewing the circumstances of this prosecution.” (The prosecutors at the main Justice Department who were given control of the case then also resigned rather than drop the charges.)
What To Watch For
The charges against Adams haven’t been formally dismissed yet, as a federal judge is still deciding whether to accept the government’s dismissal. U.S. District Judge Dale Ho canceled Adams’ upcoming trial but declined to drop the charges during a hearing in February, instead appointing an outside attorney to advise him on how to handle the case. Another hearing is scheduled for mid-March, meaning a decision on the case’s fate won’t come before then.
Who Is Emil Bove?
Bove came to the Justice Department from private practice, where he represented Trump in the president’s New York criminal trial last year. Bove also previously served as an assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York—the office that he then went on to criticize—and co-led its national security unit and narcotics unit, where he oversaw cases against figures like Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. While Bove flew relatively under the radar during his time as Trump’s personal lawyer as compared with other attorneys, he’s quickly come under scrutiny since starting at the DOJ, where he’s filling in as deputy attorney general before another former Trump attorney, Todd Blanche, is confirmed by the Senate. (Bove will then become the principal associate deputy attorney general.) Politico reported in February the U.S. attorney’s office conducted an inquiry into Bove during his time there because of his “harsh” management style, which concluded Bove should be demoted, though that order was never carried out. As Trump’s DOJ has ended prosecutions against Jan. 6 rioters and threatened consequences against prosecutors who participated in those probes, NBC News also reported Bove was now targeting prosecutors after he had similarly worked on Jan. 6 cases himself at the U.S. attorney’s office.
Tangent
Senate Democrats’ letter came soon after Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee also launched an investigation into Bove’s handling of the Adams charges, sending a letter Sunday to Attorney General Pam Bondi asking the DOJ to provide relevant documents and information. The Senate committee also isn’t the first to direct complaints against Bove to the New York State Bar, with watchdog groups American Oversight and the Campaign for Accountability and a New York state senator also sending letters to the attorney grievance committee.
Key Background
Adams was indicted in September on federal charges of fraud and bribery, with prosecutors alleging the mayor unlawfully received campaign donations and other gifts from the Turkish government in exchange for political favors. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and denied any wrongdoing, and has refused to resign from office. The DOJ’s decision to move to dismiss the charges comes after Trump had expressed openness to pardoning Adams, meeting with the New York City mayor at Mar-a-Lago and saying he had been treated “pretty unfairly.” Though a Democrat, Adams has expressed willingness to work with Trump on his hardline immigration policies, saying before Trump’s inauguration that New York City was “not going to be a safe haven for those who commit repeated violent crimes against innocent migrants, immigrants and longstanding New Yorkers.” Adams also announced in February he would work with the Trump administration by opening New York’s Rikers Island prison to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, going against the city’s longstanding commitment to be a “sanctuary city” that doesn’t cooperate with federal immigration officials.
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