Hochul told Adams to clean house in private call but has not asked him to resign

By CNN Newsource

Published September 30, 2024 12:54 PM

By Gloria Pazmino and Gregory Krieg, CNN

(CNN) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul told Mayor Eric Adams to clean house during a private phone call with the embattled mayor this past week, according to multiple sources familiar with the call.

Hochul did not ask Adams to resign, but she made it clear Adams needs to work to regain the trust of New Yorkers, the sources said.

“I’ve talked to the mayor about what my expectations are, and I don’t give out details of private conversations,” Hochul, a Democrat, told reporters Monday.

Hochul’s remarks track with what she has said publicly after the Democratic mayor was charged last week. Adams is facing five federal counts of bribery, corruption, wire fraud and soliciting and accepting donations from foreign nationals. He has pleaded not guilty.

Sources familiar with the calls said Hochul spoke with Adams Thursday evening before she publicly released a statement saying Adams should “review the situation” and find a path forward that would reassure New Yorkers they will be well served by their leaders.

Since then, the governor has also told Adams he should dismiss aides in his administration who have been wrapped up in investigations, sources familiar with the conversation told CNN. The aides include Deputy Mayors Sheena Wright and Phil Banks and senior adviser Tim Pearson, who resigned from his post Monday, all of whom have been searched by federal investigators.

Adams has resisted calls to fire the aides – all members of his inner circle. Chief counsel Lisa Zornberg resigned after Adams ignored her calls to fire the aides.

Pearson, a close friend of Adams, resigned from his role as senior adviser to the deputy mayor of public safety on Monday, the fifth senior Adams administration official to do so in recent weeks.

“As I look ahead to the next chapter of my life, I’ve decided to focus on family, self-care and new endeavors,” Pearson wrote in his letter of resignation, and Adams thanked him for his years of service in a statement.

Federal authorities searched Pearson’s cellphones earlier this month. He is not accused of any wrongdoing related to the searches, and CNN has reached out to Pearson’s attorney.

In addition to the federal investigation, Pearson, a former New York Police Department inspector, is ensnared in four separate sexual harassment lawsuits.

Adams addressed his calls with the governor during an unrelated press conference on Monday. While he did not go into the details of the call, he confirmed Hochul had not asked him to resign.

“The goal is to continue to show that we are going to continue to move into the right direction, and we’re doing that,” the mayor said.

Adams has said he has no plans to resign and that he is getting back to the work of running the city while his case plays out.

As Adams was making an infrastructure announcement in Queens, his lawyer was in Manhattan beginning to outline his defense during a press conference at his office.

Alex Spiro, who is representing Adams, outlined a motion to dismiss the bribery charge against Adams, saying the gifts the mayor received did not amount to a federal crime and were nothing more than “gratuities.”

Spiro also took issue with one of the government’s key witnesses – a former staffer who is now cooperating with prosecutors – who he accused of having “an ax to grind.”

The attorney also accused federal prosecutors of ethical misconduct and leaking grand jury testimony.

“Violating grand jury secrecy is a criminal act and it exposes them to what is really going on here,” he said.

Asked about Spiro’s comments, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams said he hadn’t seen the remarks and declined to comment. Anything his office has to say about the case going forward will be in court filings, Williams said.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

CNN’s Kara Scannell and Maria Sole Campinoti contributed to this report.