Brooklyn residents, many of whom woke up to the news that New York City Mayor Eric Adams was indicted by federal authorities, said it was a confusing time for the city.
Adams was indicted on federal charges of bribery, fraud and soliciting illegal foreign campaign donations. The indictment, unsealed on Thursday morning, said the charges go back to when he was Brooklyn Borough President.
At a news conference in front of Gracie Mansion on mid-morning Thursday, the mayor said he will not resign.
“My day to day will not change,” he said. “I ask New Yorkers to wait and hear our defense before making any judgments.”
Brooklyn residents had mixed feelings upon hearing the indictment news.
“To tell you the honest truth I think he’s been doing a proper job,” said Flatbush resident and team sales associate Pauline Sawney, adding that criticism of the mayor often seems race related.
“I personally believe the indictment isn’t going anywhere far— let’s face it, everybody is corrupted in this country. And if he’s doing a good job why try to indict him?”
Connie Coleman from Kensington said she was surprised with the indictment.
“I thought he was doing a decent job, that he was on the up-and-up,” Coleman, 77, said.
But the retired teacher said she is giving him a chance.
“We’ll find out if what he did was legal or illegal,” she said. “But it’s really too bad.”
Emily Kane of Prospect Park South said the constant headlines of top officials and possible federal indictments were confusing.
“It’s hard to keep track of who’s being accused of what,” the 35-year-old musician said.
That said, now that the mayor himself has been indicted, she will take more time to learn about what’s happening.
“All I can say is that it doesn’t look good for the mayor,” she said.
Mekhi Norman said he also needed to learn more.
“Most things I’ve heard about him were really negative, and it’s definitely encouraged me to do more research about him,” said the Brooklyn College student. “If those charges were to be true, he would deserve what’s coming to him.”
Norman, 18, said he would be inclined to vote for someone else if Adams were to run again in 2025.
Kensington resident Marlene Siegel said she saw the indictment coming.
“The last few weeks have been one thing after another, so it’s been very stressful,” said Siegel, who noted she was in her mid-70s.
She was curious to see whether Governor Kathy Hochul would do anything to make Adams resign.
The New York City Charter gives the governor the power to remove a mayor, according to the New York Times. Hochul could suspend Adams for up to 30 days and then remove him “after service upon him of a copy of the charges and an opportunity to be heard in his defense,” the paper said.
“I want to give him the benefit of the doubt, but I will not be voting for him next year,” Siegel said.
Russell Adler, owner of Flintts Mints in Greenpoint, said he voted for Adams in 2021 but felt the mayor’s Wednesday evening address gave him “an inkling he is probably guilty of something.”
“His little sound bite that ‘I knew that if I fought for the people of New York, they’d come for me’-- I don’t like that conspiratorial stuff,” Adler explained.
The 38-year-old added that New Yorkers probably aren’t in shock considering “we got a governor who resigned, and now a mayor who either will be forced to resign or resign of his own free will.”
“Every Democrat in the country knows it gets harder with every new candidate that they put on our plate,” Adler added.
Citrine Ghraowi, a 29-year-old designer living in Bushwick, said the news of Adams’ indictment was “pleasant.”
“I’m not very surprised, I’m not also a very big fan of Eric Adams either,” Ghraowi said.
She said he didn’t appear to be a good person, and did not agree with the mayor’s support of the Police Department and for Israel over Palestine.
In particular, Ghraowi said she was upset over Adams’ handling of the Sutter Avenue L train shooting earlier this month.
“He’s constantly on the side of police… I think there’s a lot of people who want him out,” she concluded.
Don Gobi, a homeless resident who spoke to BK Reader in Greenpoint, said he was skeptical and disappointed.
“Maybe there was a reason that it happened that was, maybe it was a targeting so that it happened that way,” Gobi said. “I still support him, but like I said, him just being involved is a problem.”
