NEW YORK, March 8, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - A court-appointed legal expert recommended Friday closing the corruption case against New York Mayor Eric Adams, after President Donald Trump's Justice Department tried to stop the prosecution over its alleged effect on the city's migrant crackdown.

District Judge Dale Ho had selected outside attorney Paul Clement to make the case for why the charges against Adams should not be dropped -- but the lawyer recommended dismissal with prejudice.

That would mean the case could not be brought again in the same court.

"The materials that have already been made public provide ample reasons to order dismissal with prejudice. The government's own recent filings reflect a belief that this prosecution was initiated in bad faith," Clement said in a court filing.

Acting US Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove asked federal prosecutors in New York last month to drop the bribery and fraud charges against Adams, an unusual move that triggered a wave of protest resignations in the Manhattan district attorney's office and in Washington.

Bove said the prosecution was restricting the Democratic mayor's "ability to devote full attention and resources to illegal immigration and violent crime," an argument that he repeated during a previous court hearing held by Ho.

Bove's bid to drop the charges prompted allegations that it was a quid pro quo in exchange for Adams agreeing to enforce Trump's immigration crackdown -- a claim denied by the mayor.

Adams had been scheduled to go on trial on April 21 but Ho vacated the court date.

The judge appointed Clement, who served as solicitor general under former president George W. Bush, to present arguments for why the Adams indictment should not be quashed.

Adams has resisted calls to resign and announced plans to run again for mayor of the largest US city in November's election.

Once touted as a future Democratic Party star, Adams was accused of wire fraud, soliciting illegal foreign campaign donations and a bribery conspiracy involving Turkish citizens and at least one Turkish official.

He also allegedly accepted luxury international flights, hotel suites and free high-end restaurant meals, including from Turkish associates, in return for favors.

Bove's stunning incursion into an anti-corruption case involving a public official has rattled the legal community and a Justice Department that has seen a number of top officials fired, demoted or reassigned since Trump took office.