NYC Mayor Eric Adams seeks dismissal of bribery charge for allegedly accepting $100K in gifts
NEW YORK (WABC) -- Part of the indictment against Mayor Eric Adams should be dismissed because the "alleged conduct does not support the bribery charge," his attorney said Monday after filing a motion to dismiss the count.
"There was no quid pro quo. There was no this for that," defense attorney Alex Spiro said.
Adams has pleaded not guilty to a five-count indictment that accused him of pressuring the FDNY to rush an inspection at the new Turkish consulate in Manhattan after years of taking more than $100,000 in flight upgrades and luxury hotel stays from Turkish officials.
Meanwhile, Tuesday, Tim Pearson, one of Adams' most influential advisers, has submitted a letter of resignation less than a week after the mayor was indicted on federal corruption charges.
Pearson served with Adams as a police officer and became one of his most influential advisers. He is also one of the people who had his house raided and his electronics seized this month.
Adams released a statement saying,
"Tim has had a long career in both the public and private sectors, where he has spent over 30 years keeping New Yorkers safe. We appreciate Tim's decades of service to this city and wish him well."
Spiro said Adams was Brooklyn Borough President at the time, a largely ceremonial post with no authority over the FDNY.
"Gratuities are not federal crimes. Courtesies to politicians are not federal crimes," Spiro said. "That's just what happens."
He compared the airline upgrades to a politician getting a better table at a restaurant or "his iced tea refilled" and said airline upgrades do not need to be disclosed. "Personal travel is not required to be disclosed. The other thing not required to be disclosed are upgrades and things of that nature," Spiro said.
During a news conference at his law firm, Spiro also faulted the rest of the case against Adams, insisting there is no evidence of fraud or conspiracy and saying of the prosecutors "they have lots of law books and very little real word experience."
"This isn't a real case. Never was," Spiro said.
Spiro will also fight the other charges involving fraud and conspiracy because he says there was no campaign scheme among Adams and his staff.
"Eric Adams told all of them, never accept foreign money, he did it in writing, he did it in person," Spiro said.
But prosecutors allege that Adams' 2021 campaign reaped "over $10 million in Matching Funds based on the false certifications" of donations.
Spiro says that's intentionally misleading and the indictment details only $18,000 worth of improper donations that were matched with public funds. And he says Adams had no idea that had happened and had no motivation to raise money illegally.
Adams has told his constituents that he plans to continue governing the city as he hopes to fight the federal charges accusing him of crimes from bribery, wire fraud and accepting improper campaign donations.
On Monday, the mayor attended a graduation ceremony for sanitation workers and an infrastructure event in Queens where he spoke about his commitment to stay in office and that he has the governor's support.
"We had great conversations, she acknowledged the great things that we've done together, everything from transit, crime, to some of the very complicated things," Adams said. "And you know, the goal is to continue to show that we're going to continue moving the right direction, and we're doing that."
Adams is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday for a conference. That's when the public could learn when this trial against the sitting mayor could get underway.
(ABC News contributed to this report.)
ALSO READ: Debate emerges over whether Eric Adams should resign as mayor of New York City
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