Durbin asks for bar investigation into Bove over Adams case

Senate Judiciary Democrats filed a complaint against Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove with the New York State Bar, asking for an investigation into his role in dismissing charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams.

The request points to accusations from a prosecutor who resigned over the matter indicating Adams offered assistance with President Trump’s immigration enforcement policies ahead of the dismissal — something the Adams camp has denied.

“As detailed in official Department of Justice and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the SDNY memoranda and subsequent public reporting, Mr. Bove has explicitly premised the dismissal of charges against Mayor Eric L. Adams upon the extraction of a political favor from Mayor Adams to benefit President Trump,” ranking member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) wrote to the First Judicial Department in New York, which handles such complaints.

“Notably, the dismissal is inherently coercive, because it was without prejudice, therefore allowing Mr. Bove to use the threat of again charging Mayor Adams to ensure the political favor is fulfilled.”

Adams is slated to appear before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday for a hearing on sanctuary cities.

The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment.

The request points to a Feb. 10 letter from Bove to Public Integrity Section prosecutors at the Department of Justice.

“He made clear that the decision was made ‘without assessing the strength of the evidence or the legal theories on which the case is based,’ but rather premised on the nakedly partisan consideration that ‘the pending prosecution has unduly restricted Mayor Adams’ ability to devote full attention and resources to the illegal immigration and violent crime that escalated under the policies of the prior Administration,’” the committee said, referencing portions of Bove’s letter.

Adams pleaded not guilty last September to charges stemming from his time as Brooklyn borough president, accusing him of improperly accepting improper campaign contributions and and luxury travels perks from those seeking to influence him.

More than a half dozen prosecutors who worked on the case have since resigned from the department, accusing Justice Department leaders of acting out of political considerations in pushing to drop the case.

The letter from the panel’s Democrats lays out four episodes it says violate rules of professional conduct.

“Public confidence is further eroded when such serious misconduct is met with no consequences,” they wrote in asking for an investigation.

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