After months of chaos and corruption, Mayor Eric Adams became the first sitting mayor in N.Y.C. history to be charged with federal crimes. But he didn’t take the chaos as a sign to lay low. He found time to make moves like blocking Law 42, a law restricting solitary confinement for the health of incarcerated people. Meanwhile, Adams played the system.
Since his September indictment, Adams strategized, publicly allying himself with presidential candidate Donald Trump. Adams then skipped N.Y.C.’s Martin Luther King Day festivities to attend Trump’s inauguration. He claimed he’d been connecting with Trump to help the city.
But in February, Adams warned his commissioners to stay on Trump’s good side: letting immigration agents wreak havoc and refraining from badmouthing the president. That day, Trump’s Justice Department made an announcement. Adams' charges were dropped. Numerous prosecutors in the Southern District of New York resigned as a result.
Adams hasn’t received the full pardon he wants yet. His case is up for review after November. Now, N.Y.C. hangs in the balance, with its mayor vulnerable to the whims of a president who narrowly escaped sentencing on 34 felony counts himself. How many other local officials will barter with Trump? What could that mean for Black, immigrant, LGBTQ+, and incarcerated residents?
Both Adams and Trump evaded legal consequences to get where they are. But the law shouldn’t be about playing games — it should be about justice.