Mayor Adams' lawyers are calling on judges to sanction prosecutors and file charges over alleged press leaks

Mayor Eric Adams' legal team went on the offensive Tuesday and filed a legal motion They accused federal prosecutors of leaking privileged grand jury evidence to the press last year and called on the court to take disciplinary action and dismiss the case.

The mayor's lawyers argue in the filing that the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) violated its ethical and legal obligations by releasing “most of the details of the indictment” to the press before filing brought charges against the mayor.

The request came a day after Adams' lawyers, led by prominent lawyer Alex Spiro, filed a separate motion asking the court to dismiss one of the five charges against him – bribery.

amNewYork Metro has reached out to SDNY for comment and is awaiting a response.

In the filing, Adams' attorney contends that the steady stream of leaks shaped the public perception of the mayor's alleged guilt before charges were even filed. The mayor's defense also claimed that they frequently asked federal prosecutors to contain the leaks, but they were always ignored.

“Given the government's refusal to police its own misconduct, the court must intervene to protect the mayor's pretrial and trial rights, preserve the integrity of the judicial process, and ensure continued compliance with Rule 6(e) in a case, “The government admits it is still looking for evidence to support his theories,” the filing states. “The court should hold an evidentiary hearing to determine the extent of the prosecutor’s misconduct and take appropriate remedial action, including dismissal of the charges.”

Adams' lawyers argue in the filing that many of the leaks must have come from federal prosecutors because specific details were included in various news reports over the past year.

They claimed the leaks revealed important information such as the objectives of the investigation, the type of evidence prosecutors sought and seized, and the identities of witnesses called to testify, among other details of the case.

Spiro has been aggressive since the mayor was formally charged in the 57-page indictment last Thursday, seeking to discredit the government's case against him. He has argued in legal documents and news conferences that the allegations against Adams, including bribery and soliciting foreign campaign contributions, are frivolous and have little support.

Hours after the indictment was unsealed, the mayor's lawyer previewed his strategy to try to flip the script on FBI agents. At a news conference Monday, Spiro argued that the SDNY, not his client, was guilty of wrongdoing.

Adams pleaded not guilty to all five counts after turning himself in to federal authorities on Friday. He is due back in court on Wednesday, October 2nd for a conference at which Spiro will seek to have the entire case dismissed.