New York City Mayor Eric Adams accused of 1993 sexual assault in legal filing

New York Mayor Eric Adams speaks during his weekly press conference at New York City Hall on November 14, 2023.Angela Weiss | Afp | Getty Images

New York City Mayor Eric Adams has been accused of sexually assaulting a woman in 1993, according to a legal summons filed Wednesday.

The three-page filing does not contain details of the alleged assault but names Adams, the transit bureau of the New York Police Department and the New York Police Department Guardians Association as defendants.

“Plaintiff was sexually assaulted by Defendant Eric Adams in New York, New York in 1993 while they both worked for the City of New York,” the summons reads.

The filing seeks a trial and $5 million in relief. It was filed in state Supreme Court in Manhattan. The woman's attorney did not immediately return an emailed request for comment on Thursday.

In a statement, a City Hall spokesman said: “The mayor does not know who this person is. If they ever met, he doesn't recall it. But he would never do anything to physically harm another person and vigorously denies any such claim.”

Adams, a Democrat, was a New York City police officer who rose to the rank of captain before entering politics. He served as a state senator and Brooklyn borough president before becoming mayor.

The summons was filed under the Adult Survivors Act, a special New York law that has cleared the way for a wave of lawsuits against famous men accused of sexual misconduct. The law has led to more than 2,500 lawsuits, including cases against former President Donald Trump, hip hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs and the comedian and actor Russell Brand.

The filing comes as Adams has been dogged by an FBI investigation into his 2021 campaign that prompted agents to seize his phones and raid the home of his chief campaign fundraiser.

The New York Times and New York Post have reported that part of the investigation involves examining whether Adams inappropriately tried to help the government of Turkey get city approval to open a 35-story skyscraper housing diplomatic facilities in 2021, despite concerns about the tower's fire safety systems.

Adams has sidestepped questions about the FBI investigation but has maintained he did nothing wrong.