DOJ Lawyers Resign Instead of Giving NYC Mayor Eric Adams Pardon

Source: Michael M. Santiago / Getty

Six officials with the Department of Justice resigned, declining to drop federal charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams.

On Thursday (February 13), six senior officials in the Department of Justice resigned rather–including acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Danielle Sassoon—tendered their resignation in protest over an order to drop the federal corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams. The resignations have rocked the DOJ and sent a clear message to the administration of President Donald Trump. 

The Danielle Sassoon letter to AG Bondi is wow. If you have a tip about what’s going on in DOJ/SDNY, I can be reached on Signal at annabower.24Read the letter: http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25…

— Anna Bower (@annabower.bsky.social) 2025-02-13T21:40:08.516Z

Sassoon wrote a letter to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, detailing that the directive by acting deputy Attorney General Emil Bove amounted to a “quid pro quo”, citing that the dropping of the charges against Adams was sought for his help in aiding Trump’s immigration agenda. “Rather than be rewarded, Adams’s advocacy should be called out for what it is: an improper offer of immigration enforcement assistance in exchange for a dismissal of his case,” she wrote. Sassoon also blasted Bove for demanding all notes from a meeting she had with Adams’ attorney, Alex Spiro. She also stated that the office was preparing a superseding indictment against Adams for obstruction and destroying evidence. Because the law does not support a dismissal, and because I am confident that Adams has committed the crimes with which he is charged, I cannot agree to seek a dismissal driven by improper considerations,” she wrote.

After Bove tried to re-assign the case to the public integrity section in Washington D.C., acting head John Keller resigned. Kevin Driscoll, head of the criminal division also resigned along with three other officials in the units. Bove said that all who resigned would be put on leave & investigated. Bove blasted Sassoon over her letter, claiming she “lost sight” of the oath of office that she took.

The resignations would make it clear for Adams to still have the charges dropped against him. The embattled mayor met with Trump’s “border czar” Tom Homan on Thursday (February 13), a precursor to his agreeing to allow ICE officers into the Riker’s Island prison facility in defiance of a 2014 law prohibiting such a move. In an interview on Fox & Friends on Friday morning (February 14) with the mayor at his side, Homan said, “If he doesn’t come through, I’ll be back in New York City,” said Homan. “And we won’t be sitting on the couch, I’ll be in his office, up his butt saying, ‘Where the hell is the agreement we came to?’”