Judge Appoints Outside Lawyer To Argue Against Dismissing Adams Case

NEW YORK CITY — Federal judge Dale Ho has appointed an independent attorney to argue against the Justice Department's motion that Mayor Eric Adam's corruption case should be dismissed.

As part of his decision, Ho ordered Adam's April 21 corruption trial adjourned, as he wants to hear from the independent attorney before making a ruling whether to drop the charges.

U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement has been chosen to argue against the DOJ.

Clement has been asked to file his arguments by March 7 with a potential hearing being held on March 14.

In a five-page court order filed on Friday, Ho said he made the decision due to "the public importance of his case, which calls for careful deliberation."

In addition, a third party was needed after the DOJ took the same position as Adams' defense team.

Ho has said he would "endeavor to rule expeditiously" after hearing from Clement, the DOJ and Adams' defense team.

On Wednesday, Ho declined to rule on the case from the bench but disclosed he would be issuing a ruling soon, Patch previously reported.

"This is a very complicated situation, at least from where I sit," Ho said.

“I’m not going to shoot from the hip right here on the bench. I want to make sure that I consider everything appropriate, and that I don’t consider anything inappropriate, and make a reasoned decision that is mindful of my role, which I understand here is quite narrow.”

This is a breaking news story. This post will be updated.