Judge in Eric Adams corruption case orders both sides to keep press statements in line

Both sides in the federal corruption case against Mayor Eric Adams have accused the other of making statements to the press about the case that violate rules about disclosing non-public information. Adams’ attorneys have additionally accused the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York of leaking information about grand jury proceedings to the press, which they have denied.

In an order filed on Monday, Judge Dale Ho declined to weigh in on whether either side had actually broken those rules, choosing instead to order that both prosecution and defense recommit to following rules meant to provide for a fair trial. Both sides agreed to comply, Ho said in the order.

A spokesperson for the Southern District declined to comment on the order, and a spokesperson for Adams’ defense team did not immediately respond. Adams was charged in September with five counts of bribery and campaign finance law violations in connection to Turkish travel perks and an alleged straw donor scheme. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

On Dec. 19, prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office requested that the judge order  Adams’ defense team – led by Alex Spiro – to comply with Local Criminal Rule 23.1, which prohibits the release of non-public information or opinions that would prejudice or interfere with a fair trial. Prosecutors accused the defense attorneys of making false statements and stating opinions about the case in violation of that rule and alleging that they “attacked” the credibility of witnesses. 

“Defense counsel’s improper public comments about the merits of the case and the Government’s motivations seek to taint the jury pool with a false narrative accusing the Government of investigating the defendant and obtaining the Indictment as retribution for certain positions the defendant took as Mayor starting in or about October 2022,” prosecutors said in their motion. Shortly before the indictment against the mayor was unsealed, Adams suggested that the Justice Department was retaliating against him for speaking out against the federal government’s handling of the migrant influx to New York and other cities.

On Dec. 23, Adams’ defense attorneys responded in turn, accusing prosecutors of violating the same rule, as well as accusing them of leaking grand jury information. “Since the beginning of this case the government has made false and unethical comments calculated to mislead the public–this letter being the latest example,” Spiro wrote of the prosecutors’ motion. “Those comments have raised a substantial likelihood of prejudice to a fair trial by poisoning the public narrative and undermining Mayor Adams’s presumption of innocence.”

Ho’s order noted that the court will still issue a separate opinion and order on the defense’s request for a hearing on allegations that prosecutors leaked grand jury information.

Adams’ trial is currently slated to begin on April 1. He has pleaded not guilty to five federal corruption charges.