It’s no joke.
Mayor Eric Adams urged a Manhattan judge Monday to move up the start of his corruption trial by three weeks — coincidentally to April Fool’s Day — saying a later trial date would hamper his re-election bid.
The federal charges against Hizzoner — involving him allegedly gobbling up $123,000 in travel perks from Turkish nationals before helping to fast-track the opening of the Turkish consulate building — “will continue to cast a cloud” over his campaign “until it is resolved by a jury of New Yorkers,” Adams’ lawyer wrote in a federal court filing.
The lawyer, Alex Spiro, asked Judge Dale Ho to move up Adams’ trial date from April 21 to April 1, which would allow for a resolution in the case with more room to spare before June’s Democratic primary.
Of course, Adams’ re-election bid could be predicated on him being found not guilty or at least escaping prison time if convicted.
The 64-year-old mayor’s filing notes that several key dates in his 2021 campaign — which the feds say was propped up with tens of thousands of dollars in illegal donations from Turks — unfolded during the same time period that year when Adams is slated to be at his corruption trial this time around.
The second mayoral debate in 2021, for example, occurred May 13. If such an event were held around that same time this year, it would conflict with what’s expected to be Adams’ month-long trial over whether he is guilty of charges of wire fraud, bribery, and illegally soliciting funds from foreign nationals.
“Given the realities of the news and election cycle, this earlier trial date is not only feasible, but essential here,” Spiro wrote in requesting an April 1 start.
“An earlier trial date will ensure that Mayor Adams’s speedy trial rights are upheld, that the
Mayor will be able to fully participate in his reelection campaign and that this city’s voters can be
rid of the distraction of this misguided indictment as they hear from and evaluate the Democratic
candidates for Mayor on their merits,” Spiro wrote to the court.
The mayor has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is asking New Yorkers to elect him to a second term in what’s expected to be a crowded primary filled with a slew of Democratic challengers hoping to capitalize on the mayor’s troubles.
Adams’ legal team has separately asked the judge to throw out his bribery charge, one of five criminal counts the mayor faces.
They have argued that the feds didn’t show the “quid pro quo” needed for the bribery rap even if it’s true that the mayor scooped up the travel goodies — which included a stiffly discounted stay at the Istanbul St. Regis Hotel’s posh “Bentley Suite,” which is modeled after the luxury car.
Judge Ho is expected to rule on the bribery issue in the next few weeks.
