Timothy Pearson’s resignation comes just two weeks after the mayor’s chief counsel abruptly resigned.
One of New York City Mayor Eric Adams’s top aides tendered his resignation on Monday, less than a week after the Democrat mayor was indicted on five federal corruption charges.
Timothy Pearson, one of the mayor’s closest confidants, is stepping down from his position as senior adviser for public safety. His resignation take effect on Oct. 4, according to his resignation letter.
His lawyer, Hugh Mo, said Pearson recently had his cellphone and documents seized from his Long Island home. Investigators also seized the cellphones of three other top mayoral deputies in early September.
Pearson has not been publicly accused of wrongdoing by prosecutors or charged with a crime.
In his resignation letter, Pearson stated that he played a critical role in handling the city’s security issues and managing migrant services, which included overseeing city contracts for migrant shelters.
His resignation letter made no mention of the ongoing probe, only stating that he had decided to resign because he wanted “to focus on family, self-care, and new endeavors.”
Adams later issued a statement praising Pearson for his 30 years of work in the public and private sectors, saying, “We appreciate Tim’s decades of service to this city and wish him well.”
Pearson served as an NYPD inspector before joining the Adams administration in 2022. The mayor had previously defended Pearson after four lawsuits were filed against him alleging sexual misconduct in the workplace.
The resignation comes two weeks after Adams’s chief counsel, Lisa Zornberg, abruptly resigned on Sept. 14, saying that she could “no longer effectively serve” in her role. Zornberg was not among the officials whose phones were seized by federal investigators.
The indictment against Adams—the first for a sitting New York City mayor in modern times—included email and text messages suggesting that Adams attempted to cover his tracks. In one, Adams allegedly tried to fabricate a paper trail to claim that he reimbursed an aide for airplane tickets, even though there was no initial payment to reimburse.
Adams is also accused of accepting bribes and illegal “straw campaign” donations from Turkish officials and businesspeople for years, dating back to his time as Brooklyn borough president and continuing through his 2021 mayoral race.
Adams has pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing. On Sept. 30, his lawyers filed a motion seeking the dismissal of a bribery charge, which is one of the five criminal charges brought against him.Several Democratic officials have called for the mayor’s resignation following his indictment. Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) said that the charges are too serious for the mayor to continue in his role.
“My belief is that the Mayor has lost the ability to effectively lead the City of New York, and therefore, he must resign,” Nadler said in a statement on Sept. 27.
State Sen. John Liu said that while he acknowledged that Adams is entitled to due process, the city needs a mayor “who is able to devote full time and energy to putting the city on the right track.”
“Mayor Adams is simply unable to do that for the foreseeable future and therefore, for the good of all New Yorkers, must resign immediately,” Liu said in a statement.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) stated on Sept. 26 that Adams should step down “for the good of the city.”
“I do not see how Mayor Adams can continue governing New York City,” she stated on X. “The flood of resignations and vacancies are threatening gov function. Nonstop investigations will make it impossible to recruit and retain a qualified administration.”
Gov. Kathy Hochul, a fellow Democrat who has the power to remove Adams from office, told reporters on Monday that she had spoken to the mayor and decided to give him a chance to regain the confidence “that I think is wavering right now.”
Bill Pan and the Associated Press contributed to this report.