U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon, via Southern District of New York
"I remain baffled by the rushed and superficial process by which this decision was reached," Sassoon wrote in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Adams, a Democrat who said he was targeted by the Biden administration, has been willing to work with the Trump administration crackdown to curb illegal immigration. Adams pleaded not guilty to charges that he accepted bribes from Turkish officials.
"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," Sassoon wrote to Bondi.
Adams' lawyer Alex Spiro said in an email to Reuters that the charges against his client are a "sham."
"If SDNY had any proof whatsoever that the mayor destroyed evidence, they would have brought those charges—as they continually threatened to do, but didn’t, over months and months," Spiro wrote. "This newest false claim is just the parting shot of a misguided prosecution exposed as a sham."
In his Thursday memo, Bove wrote that Sassoon had refused to comply with what he called his office's finding that the case against Adams amounted to weaponization of the justice system.
"Your resignation is accepted…you lost sight of the oath that you took when you started at the DOJ," he wrote.
"Your office has no authority to contest the weaponization finding," wrote Bove, Trump's former personal criminal defense lawyer. "The Justice Department will not tolerate the insubordination."
On Monday, president-elect Trump said he would consider a pardon for New York City Mayor Eric Adams. (Getty Images)
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House. Since taking office in January, Trump has fired more than a dozen federal prosecutors who pursued cases against him.
In a statement to Fox News, Bove said he concluded that the prosecution against Adams had to be dismissed in order to "prioritize national security and public safety over continuing with a case that has been tainted from the start by troubling tactics."
"There is no room at the Justice Department for attorneys who refuse to execute on the priorities of the Executive Branch - priorities determined by the American people," he said. "I look forward to working with new leadership at SDNY on the important priorities President Trump has laid out for us to make America safe again."
Fox News' David Spunt contributed to this report.
Louis Casiano is a reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to louis.casiano@fox.com.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trumps-justice-department-order-drop-charges-nyc-mayor-eric-adams-sparks-resignations