NEW YORK (AP) — New York City Mayor Eric Adams returned to court Friday and sat stoically as his lawyers fought to remove a key charge in the case. federal corruption indictment that threatens his political future.

The Democrat’s lawyers are fighting to dismiss a bribery charge, one of five counts in a case that U.S. District Judge Dale E. Ho said will go to trial on April 21, 2025.

They argued at a hearing in Manhattan federal court that the charge does not meet the federal crime standard, particularly after recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions redefined how bribery is prosecuted.

Prosecutors suggested that Adams’ lawyers were splitting because, as they allege, Adams was taking bribes and exert influence while holding a previous elected office and while anticipating becoming mayor.

Ho said he would take the arguments “under consideration and try to make a ruling shortly.”

The bribery charge “does not constitute a federal crime” and is “insufficiently specific” to support maintaining the count as part of Adams’ indictment, his attorney John Bash argued.

“The U.S. attorney had trouble defining what the ‘quo’ is here,” Bash said, referring to the concept of “quid pro quo,” a Latin phrase that essentially means “this for that” or “something for something.” .”

the accusationwhich also includes charges of wire fraud and conspiracy, accuses Adams of accepting flight upgrades and other luxury travel benefits valued at $100,000 along with illegal campaign contributions from a Turkish official and other foreign nationals seeking to buy his influence.

In exchange, prosecutors say, Adams performed political favors that benefited the Turkish government, including pressuring the fire department in 2021 to approve the opening of a diplomatic tower he had deemed unsafe.

Adams held a different elected office at the time, Brooklyn Borough President, but by then it was clear he would become mayor.

Adams has pleaded not guilty to the charges and vowed to remain in office while preparing his legal defense.

Bash argued that the alleged benefits do not meet the legal definition of bribery because they predate his tenure as mayor and “have nothing to do with his governmental position.”

Adams’ lawyers maintain that prosecutors seek to criminalize “normal and perfectly legal acts” that Adams carried out as Brooklyn borough president before being elected mayor.

Under the law, prosecutors must prove that Adams accepted bribes in exchange for using his official position to exert influence. Assistant U.S. Attorney Hagan Scotten argued that Adams’ role as district president “brings him into the room, so to speak, with the fire commissioner.”

Ho wondered if, rather than Adams’ job as borough president, it was his impending move to City Hall that gave him the power to pressure the fire department.

“It seems a little strange when the jurisdictional connection here is that he was Brooklyn borough president but that his ability to lobby extends from something else,” Ho said.

Scotten stood his ground, arguing that “if Margot Robbie called him and was really persuasive,” the “Barbie” actor and producer still couldn’t influence the fire department without also holding elected office.

“I probably would have taken that call,” Ho joked, drawing laughter from the courtroom.

Ho assigned the defense and prosecution every 20 minutes to discuss the issue.

The judge interjected with questions throughout the arguments, at one point asking Bash to consider whether prosecutors could remedy their alleged shortcomings by providing additional details or allegations.

“I would hate to write the government’s superseding indictment for them, if that’s the direction they’re going to go,” Bash responded before launching into a lengthy discussion of the intricacies of bribery law.

Scotten said at a hearing last month that they are conducting “several related investigations” and that it is “very likely” that prosecutors will seek a superseding indictment charging Adams with additional crimes. Scotten also said it is “likely” more defendants will be charged.

On Thursday night, Ho rejected another defense attempt to undermine the case, denying Adams’ request for a hearing into the mayor’s claims that the government has been leaking information about the investigation to the media.

The judge ruled that Adams and his attorneys did not substantiate those claims and, if any leaks occurred, that the government was to blame.

In court papers outlining their arguments, Adams’ attorneys said the years of flight upgrades and other benefits the mayor received were, at best, “classic perks,” which recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings found were not covered by the bribery statute if they were granted for past acts, according to the file.

Meanwhile, federal prosecutors responded that Adams’ actions were clearly criminal.

“It should be clear from the indictment that there is nothing routine about a public official accepting more than $100,000 in benefits from a foreign diplomat, which he went to great lengths to conceal, including fabricating false document trails to create the illusion of payment. ”the prosecutors wrote.

Several of Adams’s closest aides, including his police commissioner, the schools chancellor and several vice mayors, resigned in recent months after federal investigators executed coordinated searches of their homes in early September.

Adams has maintained that he can continue to lead the city effectively while fighting the charges.

But his political future remains complicated and several opponents have announced plans to challenge him in next year’s mayoral primary.

Earlier this week, Adams raised eyebrows after repeatedly refusing to criticize former President Donald Trump, refusing to say when he last spoke to the Republican nominee or whether he was seeking a pardon should Trump win re-election.