The top federal prosecutor in Manhattan resigned on Thursday after the Justice Department ordered her to drop corruption charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams.
The resignation of Republican Danielle Sassoon, who served as interim U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, was confirmed by a spokeswoman.
Her resignation comes days after a senior Justice Department official instructed New York prosecutors to drop the case against Mayor Adams, who is accused of accepting illegal campaign contributions and bribes in the form of free or reduced-cost travel from people who wanted to buy his influence.
Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove said in a letter Monday that the case against Democratic Mayor Adams should be dismissed so he can help President Donald Trump's anti-immigration campaign and run for re-election.
Justice Department officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on this development. Mr. Adams' lawyer also did not respond.
The Justice Department's decision to drop the case due to political considerations rather than the strength of the evidence has raised concerns among some career prosecutors who see it as a departure from traditional norms.
While Mr. Bove instructed that the case be dismissed as soon as possible to be "practical," for days there was no public statement or any action from the prosecution team in New York.
United States Attorney General Pam Bondi said Wednesday that she will "review" why the charges have not yet been dismissed.
Attorney Sassoon, a former associate of former Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, who was a member of the Federalist Society, a conservative group, was not the prosecutor who filed the lawsuit against Mr. Adams last year. The prosecutor who filed the indictment was former Attorney General Damian Williams, who resigned after Mr. Trump's election victory.
Ms. Sassoon was appointed to serve as acting attorney general on Jan. 21, the day Mr. Trump took office. VOA (A2 Televizion)
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