Lawyers for Mayor Eric Adams waged a frantic 11-hour effort to dismiss criminal charges against him, arguing to federal authorities that his historic prosecution would be ruinous for the city.
The Sept. 12 behind-the-scenes letter, obtained exclusively by the Post, was sent by Adams' defense team to Manhattan prosecutors before the historic federal indictment against Hitzzoner was made public Thursday. Here's a glimpse into the details of the mayor's defense.
Federal authorities' lawsuit, based on accusations that Adams accepted bribes and illegal straw donations from Turkish nationals in the 2021 mayoral race, is based on a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that significantly narrowed what constitutes a bribe, among other things. Therefore, the legal basis is weak. The lawyers argued in a letter.
They argued that such a supposedly shaky prosecution would not only ruin Adams' career, but also be harmful to New York City and the 750,000 voters who pushed him into the Gracie mansion.
“We urge the Department of Justice to decline to prosecute Eric Adams in the interests of justice,” the attorneys wrote.
A resolute-looking Mr. Adams pleaded not guilty Friday in Manhattan federal court to numerous corruption charges ranging from bribery to conspiracy to wire fraud.
His lawyers' last-ditch effort to thwart what is shaping up to be an unprecedented criminal trial that happened a few weeks ago.
In a recent letter, Mr. Adams' lawyers said that in the 10 months since federal agents began conducting high-profile raids on the homes of the mayor's allies and seizing the mayor's electronic devices, New York U.S. Attorney Damian Williams He lamented that communication with prosecutors in the Southern District Office was limited and one-sided. , according to the letter.
After Williams admitted charges of bribery and campaign finance violations, Adams' team did everything in its power to overturn the charges, arguing that prosecutors had failed to identify the actual quid pro quo required by law.
Federal authorities asked FDNY officials to allow Adams to build a 36-story skyscraper to house the Turkish consulate after he raked in more than $100,000 in travel perks, including business class upgrades and luxury hotel stays. They claim that they have responded to the goodwill of foreign officials by putting pressure on them. Open without fire inspection.
But Adams' lawyers argued that the situation did not meet the definition of quid pro quo bribery.
The Supreme Court recently set a high and narrow standard for what qualifies as a bribe, with lawyers arguing that there should be a direct line between bribery and acts by elected officials.
Plane upgrades and other perks from Turkish nationals that Mr. Adams made over the years were denied to foreign officials whose alleged “quo” (greased fire inspections of Turkish towers) did not hold the job. Considering that it was for a person, it cannot be considered a “one sen''. Until then, the letter claims:
The argument mirrors the one that marred the first public corruption case against former New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez. Menendez was indicted in 2015 after a judge dismissed the charges because prosecutors failed to offer a clear reward.
But prosecutors working under Williams pursuing the case against Adams appear to have learned a lesson when pursuing another new bribery case against Menendez.
Menendez was convicted in July after prosecutors showed that $150,000 worth of gold bars found in his bedroom were clear bribes to obtain favors from foreign governments. It is.
In the letter, Adams' team argues that the flight upgrades from Turkish Airlines were a given to encourage VIP travel on the airline, and that New York City doesn't even do business with the airline. did.
“There is no evidence that the Mayor accepted upgrades that were intended to affect him in any way, much less service-led assistance for his constituents that is completely unrelated to permitting issues,” the letter asserts. “A fixed dollar amount upgrade also fails because accepting free flights or hotel upgrades in connection with personal travel does not violate New York City ethics rules.”
The mayor's defense team zeroed in on Lana Abbasova, the federal government's “key witness” who served as Adams' liaison with the Turkish community and arranged much of the travel cited in the indictment. Continued attempts to undermine federal lawsuits.
The letter also claims that the alleged straw donations to Adams' campaign from Turkish citizens represent only a small portion of his total income. The Brooklyn borough president at the time claims he was unaware of the foreign donations and even warned his staff not to accept them.
“While this campaign received over $10 million in donations from over 15,000 contributors, there was no motive to conspire to receive corrupt donations during the summer of 2021,” the letter said. “The Mayor has repeatedly trained his campaign staff not to accept foreign donations.The donations identified by the SDNY accounted for approximately 0.4% of the total funds raised, indicating that no foreign donations were actually made. The mayor had no reason to suspect that there was.
At the end of the letter, Adams' lawyers argued that the Southern District's lawsuit against former New York Lieutenant Governor Brian Benjamin is a “sensitive story.”
A judge sentenced Benjamin to bribery charges based on accusations that he received campaign contributions from a real estate developer in exchange for directing state funds to nonprofit organizations controlled by donors.
A federal appeals judge later returned the charges, finding them “express quid pro quo,” prompting an appeal to the Supreme Court.
“Regardless of the outcome of the appeal, Brian Benjamin's political career is over,” the letter reads. “Mayor Adams would face a similar fate if he were indicted here based on far less convincing evidence.”
