In the last few weeks, multiple sexual assault lawsuits have been filed against several men in politics and entertainment. As the final wave of accusations rolled in, New York Mayor Eric Adams was caught in the overwhelming wave. Significantly, these lawsuits have been filed under the Adult Survivors Act (ASA), a legislation that had a one-year look-back period. Within that period, the statute of limitations for adult sexual assault cases in New York was suspended. As a result, victims of sexual assault would be able to file lawsuits against their former abusers.
It also didn't matter how long ago the incident happened. Explicitly, as long as the victim was 18 years or older at the time they were abused, they would be able to file a lawsuit under the ASA. The ASA was enacted on November 24, 2023, and expired exactly a year later, on November 24, 2024. However, before the deadline was reached, many women spoke up and sued their alleged abusers. After that, within a week, prominent figures, including Jamie Foxx, Andrew Cuomo, and Jimmy Iovine, were all hit with lawsuits. Mayor Eric Adams has since denied the allegations against him.
Mayor Eric Adams Accused Of Sexual Assault
On November 22, 2023, court filings accusing Eric Adams of sexual misconduct were submitted at the New York County Supreme Court. The accusations against the mayor were made by an unnamed woman who allegedly worked with him 30 years ago. The court filing explicitly states: “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.” Furthermore, NBC News reports that the court summons states that the woman “experienced sexual assault, battery, employment gender discrimination, retaliation, a hostile work environment and intentional infliction of emotional distress.”
Per USA Today, The New York City Police Department’s transit bureau and the Guardians Association of the NYPD are also listed as defendants in the legal filings. Additionally, three other unidentified entities are also listed as defendants. As a matter of fact, the ASA allows institutions that harbored abusers to be listed as defendants. Before becoming mayor, Eric Adams worked as an officer in the NYPD for 22 years.
Therefore, the plaintiff is within her rights to list the aforementioned NYPD institutions as defendants. Adams began serving as a transit officer in the department but eventually rose in the ranks and became a captain. Subsequently, he also became the head of the aforementioned Guardians Association.
While it’s now apparent where Adams worked in 1993, it remains unknown in what capacity the woman worked for New York. She may have been a colleague of Adams’s in the department. However, unless she eventually confirms that, we will remain in the dark about how exactly she worked with the mayor. In the meantime, we know that the plaintiff seeks at least $5 million in damages, according to CNN’s report.
The Response
Since the accusations were made against him, Mayor Eric Adams has strongly denied the claims. “That is not who I am, and that is not who I've ever been in my professional life. It's just something that never took place,” he said in a video posted by a Fox 5 New York reporter on X.
Additionally, a City Hall spokesperson also promptly addressed the allegations against the mayor. On November 23, 2023, they told CNN, “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.”