Mayor Eric Adams held his regular weekly in-person media availability Tuesday, days after he became the city's first indicted sitting mayor and hours after yet another trusted adviser submitted his resignation.
If he was seeking to convey his signature swagger, the mayor instead appeared evasive and isolated. Ditching his usual Jay-Z walkout music and opting to come to the podium beneath the City Hall rotunda in silence, Adams did not have any of his senior-most aides who usually bookend him at the weekly meeting.
The mayor opened with a favorite tongue-in-cheek quip for reporters, saying "Just want to let all of you know: This is all going in my book."
Adams went on to deliver his most thorough public defense to date since his indictment on federal bribery charges insisting the case was a “test” that would not distract him from governing as he deflected specific questions about the investigation for more than an hour Tuesday.
While Adams spoke extensively to reporters, he declined to answer questions about the laws he is accused of breaking, whether his security clearance has been downgraded as a result of the criminal case and if he really believes — as he has repeatedly suggested — that the investigation is politically motivated.
Instead, the mayor framed himself as a battle-tested executive, confident in his ability to overcome the “obstacles.”
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“As the case unfolds, some people are going to say, ‘You know what, we have jumped the gun on Eric Adams,' ” he said. “This is a test for folks who automatically just come with their hearts in one way. The information is going to continue to show that I do not break laws.”
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With his court appearances set to start Wednesday, Adams was asked whether he needs to name an acting mayor.
"I will be at my court hearing. I don't need an acting mayor because I am an action mayor," Adams said.
Surrounded by signs detailing his policy accomplishments, Adams ticked through his own experience of adversity, invoking his troubled childhood in working-class Queens and his struggles with dyslexia and diabetes that nearly left him blind.
“I’ve been dealing with difficult moments throughout my entire life, and in spite of all those difficult moments, I’m called the mayor of the city of New York,” he said.
Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has the ability to remove the mayor from office, said this week that she is giving Adams a chance to show he can continue to run the city as his criminal case plays out.
As Adams sought to make his political case, his attorneys were busy ramping up their legal defense.
In a court filing Tuesday, lawyers for Adams asked a judge to investigate leaks to the media from prosecutors and, if confirmed, to levy appropriate remedies, including dismissal of the indictment. That filling came one day after his attorney requested a judge toss the bribery charge — one of five counts he faces — arguing the details of the alleged conduct don't meet the threshold of a quid pro quo.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan declined comment.
The press conference came as Adams announced he had picked two women to replace top legal counsel positions in his administration.
The embattled mayor said he intends to nominate Muriel Goode-Trufant as the new corporate counsel. Adams also said Allison Stoddart will replace Lisa Zornberg as City Hall's chief counsel following Lisa Zornberg's abrupt resignation amid federal investigations surrounding the mayor and his allies.
Goode-Trufant will be subjected to the City Council's approval just like Adams' first pick, Randy Maestro, a former top aide to former Mayor Rudy Giuliani. Maestro withdrew his name earlier this month following a long-winded hearing.
Both Stoddart and Goode-Trufant were said to have left the administration in part over disagreements with the mayor stemming from his support of senior aide Tim Pearson and whether the city taxpayers should pay his legal bills.
Pearson resigned Monday night. Among his wide-ranging responsibilities at City Hall, Pearson had a significant role in approving contracts for the city’s migrant shelters. Adams thanked him in a statement late Monday.
Adams did not directly address whether the city would pay the legal bills for Pearson. A spokesperson for the New York City Law Department told NBC New York that "every determination of representation by the Law Department is subject to review as new facts and circumstances are discovered. We will continue to evaluate Tim Pearson's legal representation as we would in any case involving current or former employees."
An influential figure with little public presence, Pearson was one of the mayor’s most influential advisers. Even as he faced several lawsuits accusing him of sexual harassment and a city investigation over his role in a brawl at a migrant shelter, Pearson has retained the backing of the mayor, who he served with decades ago in the police department.
Even before the federal scrutiny, Pearson had faced multiple scandals. While serving as an adviser to the mayor, he was also collecting a paycheck as an executive at a casino seeking a state contract — an arrangement that ended after it was revealed by The New York Times two years ago.
His role in the brawl at a migrant shelter in fall 2023, where he was accused of physically attacking security guards, is currently being probed by the city’s Department of Investigation.
Pearson was the subject of a search on Sept. 4 where his phone and some papers were seized by investigators, his lawyer confirmed. It was not clear what aspect of his work might be under scrutiny by the subpoenas.
Pearson has not spoken publicly since the searches. He has not been publicly accused of wrongdoing by prosecutors or charged with a crime.
Federal prosecutors have accused Adams of soliciting and accepting illegal campaign contributions and more than $100,000 in luxury travel perks from Turkish officials and other foreign nationals seeking to buy his influence. In exchange, they say he performed official favors that benefited Turkey, including pushing through the opening of a consulate building in Manhattan over the objections of fire safety officials who said it was unsafe to occupy.
On top of that case against Adams, federal prosecutors are believed to be leading separate ongoing investigations into several top city officials with deep ties to the mayor. The drumbeat of searches and subpoenas in recent weeks has prompted the resignation of the city’s police commissioner and schools chancellor, along with mounting calls for the mayor to resign.
Adams has pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges and steadfastly rejected calls to resign.
Jake Offenhartz of the Associated Press contributed to this report.
