In a dramatic turn of events, a federal prosecutor handling the corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams abruptly resigned on Friday. In a scathing resignation letter, the prosecutor accused top Justice Department officials of seeking a “fool” to dismiss the criminal charges, raising serious questions about the integrity of the case.
The controversy surrounding the corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams deepened as attorney Hagan Scotten became the seventh person to resign over the embattled effort to dismiss the charges. A line prosecutor on the case, Scotten was placed on administrative leave Thursday after refusing to approve the case’s dismissal—a move that further fueled concerns about the Justice Department’s handling of the investigation.
In a blistering letter to Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, Scotten denounced what he termed a “dismissal-with-leverage,” calling into question the integrity of the Justice Department’s actions.
“Our laws and traditions do not permit the use of prosecutorial power to influence citizens—let alone elected officials—in this manner,” Scotten wrote to Bove, who previously served as President Donald Trump’s personal attorney.
Seventh prosecutor in Eric Adams case resigns and calls out Trump’s former lawyer in scathing letter
“If no lawyer within earshot of the President is willing to give him that advice, then I expect you’ll eventually find someone foolish or cowardly enough to file your motion,” Scotten wrote. “But that person was never going to be me.”
Scotten, a Harvard law graduate awarded two bronze stars as a troop commander in Iraq, is a seasoned prosecutor who has handled several corruption cases in New York including three associates of former Mayor Rudy Giuliani. He has also worked on other cases, against Bishop Lamor Whitehead, who is close to Adams and was convicted at trial on multiple counts of fraud. Scotten was also a clerk to Chief Justice John Roberts.
