A former federal prosecutor who led the last major takedown of a big city mayor on corruption charges says embattled Big Apple boss Eric Adams is following an aggressive defense tactic he may have learned from former President Donald Trump.
“It appears like the Adams defense team is taking lessons from the former president about how best to litigate against the government,” Mark Chutkow, a former federal prosecutor who led the public corruption case against former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick a decade ago. “In other words, your best defense is often an aggressive offense.”
Although Trump’s New York trial took place in state court, prosecuted by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office and not the U.S. Department of Justice, there was a strong perception that the charges were politically motivated. And critics have raised similar concerns about the investigation by special counsel Jack Smith.
Chutkow pointed to a pair of defense motions that he said were filed “extremely fast” — the mayor’s motion to dismiss the bribery charge against him and a motion asking the court to investigate a series of Justice Department leaks that the defense says has damaged Adams’ public image and compromises his right to a fair trial.
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New York City Mayor Eric Adams arrives at the federal court after being charged with bribery and illegally soliciting a campaign contribution from a foreign national, in New York City, October 2, 2024. (REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs)
“I do think that how quickly the defense has filed a motion to dismiss, and this motion related to the leaks, shows not only are they being very aggressive in their defense, but they’re going to shape public opinion about the case, almost the way you would in a political campaign,” he told Fox News Digital. “They’re looking at who gets to define the narrative.”
Adams, a moderate Democrat, has accused the Justice Department of going after him and people in his orbit in retaliation for his criticism of the Biden-Harris administration on border security.
“Like Trump, Adams’ legal strategy is to deny and defend,” said Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor who runs a private practice in Los Angeles. “That’s helpful for a candidate in the middle of an election, but there’s more than a public relations and political benefit. By attacking the prosecution and putting them on their heels, that forces the government into a defensive position and delays the proceedings.”
Former President Donald Trump appears in court for his hush money trial at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 30 in New York City. (Doug Mills/Pool via REUTERS)
In a battle of attrition, delays benefit the defense, he said.
“Prosecutors have limited resources and rarely deal with defendants with access to the best and brightest lawyers, like Trump and Adams do,” he said.
The argument that the U.S. Department of Justice is punishing the administration’s political opponents has been raised before — by Trump and his supporters. In addition to the cases against Trump, critics have questioned aggressive prosecutions of people involved in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
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Congress even has a House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, which held a hearing in late September to explore claims that the FBI was purging conservatives from its ranks.
U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams, whose office is prosecuting Adams, denied a political motive in connection with the case when he announced the indictment last week.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams speaks with reporters at a news briefing. His office secured an indictment against NYC Mayor Eric Adams. (Reuters/Shannon Stapleton)
“We are not focused on the right or the left,” he said during a news briefing last month. “We are focused on right and wrong. That is our duty, and we will fulfill it.”
But the government’s motive doesn’t really matter if a crime has been committed, said Chutkow, the former federal prosecutor.
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“You either committed the crime or you didn’t,” he told Fox News Digital. “It doesn’t really matter why the government chose to prosecute you.”
But Adams’ publicity campaign could be designed to influence the jury pool. It could take just one sympathic individual on the panel to break the case.
Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick (R) stands with his attorneys as he appears in Wayne County Circuit Court for his sentencing October 28, 2008, in Detroit, Michigan. Kilpatrick and dozens of allies went down in the largest big city corruption scandal in recent memory. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)
“[Prosecutors] would have to be somehow defending against their own actions,” Chutkow said. “Most judges control that pretty tightly in the courtroom, but it’s more difficult to do that in the court of public opinion. That’s what you’ve seen with the former president, where he or people supportive of him made a lot of statements in the press.”
The judge in Trump’s case, Juan Merchan, struggled to control out-of-court comments despite a gag order, he added.
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“It’s difficult when you’re dealing with a public official, because they have First Amendment rights,” Chutkow said. “The judge is always going to have to weigh the right of free speech over concerns of contaminating the jury pool.”
Adams could face up to 45 years in prison if convicted of all charges.
