By Luc Cohen
NEW YORK (Reuters) – New York Mayor Eric Adams lost a bid to narrow his five-count federal corruption indictment as a judge declined on Tuesday to dismiss a bribery charge related to luxury travel benefits provided by a Turkish official, with the trial set for April.
U.S. District Judge Dale Ho denied a motion by lawyers for the Democratic mayor to dismiss the bribery charge. The defense had cited a June U.S. Supreme Court decision in favor of the former mayor of an Indiana city also charged by federal prosecutors with corruption in seeking the dismissal.
President-elect Donald Trump on Monday said he would consider pardoning Adams after he takes office on Jan. 20. Trump, a Republican, suggested Adams was targeted for criticizing President Joe Biden’s handling of migration, one of Trump’s signature campaign issues.
“I think that he was treated pretty unfairly,” Trump told reporters on Monday, though he said he would have to review the facts of the case.
Asked about Trump’s comments later on Monday, Adams said he should not have been charged.
“I have an attorney that is going to look at every avenue to ensure I get justice,” Adams told reporters. “I did nothing wrong.”
Adams, 64, a former police officer who rose to the rank of captain, took office in January 2022. He has resisted calls to resign and pushed ahead with plans to seek reelection next year to lead the most populous U.S. city.
Federal prosecutors in September charged Adams with accepting more than $90,000 in discounted luxury hotel stays and flight upgrades from Turkish officials in exchange for pressuring city fire officials in 2021 to let Turkey open its new consulate in Manhattan despite safety concerns.
Adams was serving as Brooklyn borough president at the time, but had won the Democratic primary for mayor – all but ensuring he would win the general election in liberal New York City.
Adams has pleaded not guilty to one count of bribery, two counts of solicitation of a campaign contribution from a foreign national, one count of wire fraud and one count of wire fraud conspiracy.
‘QUESTION FOR THE JURY’
Defense lawyer Alex Spiro on Oct. 8 asked Ho to dismiss the bribery count but not the other four charges.
Spiro cited the Supreme Court’s conclusion that it is not a crime for state and local officials to accept gratuities such as gift cards or framed photographs as a token of appreciation. Spiro said Adams never agreed to take any specific official act in exchange for a benefit.
In a 30-page ruling, Ho wrote that the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office’s charges were legally sufficient for a trial.
“Whether or not Adams used his official position as Brooklyn Borough President to exert pressure on the FDNY is a factual question for the jury to resolve,” the judge wrote, referring to New York’s fire department.
In a statement, Spiro said the fact that it took Ho several months to rule showed the prosecution’s case was contrived.
“This case was simply invented to harm Mayor Adams,” Spiro said.
The trial is set to open on April 21.
Ho on Tuesday also denied a request by Adams to push the start date forward to April 1 so it could finish well in advance of the June 2025 Democratic mayoral primary, where he faces several challengers.
(Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York; Editing by Will Dunham and Bill Berkrot)
