Judge Dale Ho ruled Friday that Mayor Eric Adams' corruption trial was delayed indefinitely — but that doesn't mean it's over. Instead, he appointed independent attorney Paul Clement to present “adversarial” arguments about the Department of Justices demand to dismiss the charges.
The DOJ charged Adams last year with corruption charges, but President Donald Trump's administration ordered the case be dismissed. The action set off a firestorm in the department and has led to at least seven resignations from lawyers who refused to sign a motion to dismiss.
Several of those prosecutors then released public statements attacking acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, alleging that the charges were being dropped as part of a quid pro quo, with Adams agreeing to cooperate in Trump's mass immigrant deportation efforts.
Bove asked for the case to be dismissed but reserved the right to bring it back in the future. While Ho ruled in support of the motion, he wants further information from Clement.
Just Security editor Ryan Goodman called the decision "the right thing."
Ben Kochman, a judicial reporter for the New York Post, wrote on Blue Sky, "Adams and Trump's Justice Department have insisted that Adams' corruption case is over and done with. It's not."
"Judge Ho getting right to the heart of the complex, unique and consequential legal issues here and appointing Paul Clement (who had been appointed by a Republican as SG - not the people who asked to be involved) to brief them. Very smart and very judicial," said former district attorney and ex-federal prosecutor Mimi Rocah.
Former SDNY criminal division deputy chief Kristy Greenberg said the case "lives on for now as Court appoints distinguished conservative lawyer Paul Clement to present arguments on DoJ’s motion to dismiss the case. This is a positive step in the right direction and shows the Court isn’t inclined to be a rubber stamp."
"People like Clement care more about winning than anything else. If he agreed to do this, he's going to try to win," remarked civil rights lawyer Joshua Erlich.
Eric Columbus, a President Barack Obama appointment at the DOJ, said, "This is a sign that Judge Ho isn’t rushing to rubber-stamp Bove’s attempt to dismiss Adams’ charges w/o prejudice. (He might well dismiss with prejudice, removing the sword dangling over Adams’ head.)
"Clement is a savvy pick — a former Solicitor General with impeccable conservative credentials."
And Georgetown law professor Steve Vladeck said, "This is such a savvy move by Judge Ho."