NYC no longer covering legal bills for former mayoral aide Tim Pearson in sex harassment, retaliation suits

Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News on Mar 13, 2026

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NEW YORK — Taxpayers will no longer foot the bill for the legal representation of former Mayor Eric Adams' aide Tim Pearson in lawsuits accusing him of sexual harassment and retaliation, Corporation Counsel Steve Banks said Friday.

“Based on my review of new evidence since the original decisions were made, I have determined that he is not entitled to representation by the City in these matters,” Banks said of Pearson in a statement.

“Thus, the City will no longer pay for Mr. Pearson’s legal representation.”

The firm had as of January been paid $622,931 to represent Pearson alone in the cases, the Daily News previously reported. Banks offered no explanation for the decision beyond his statement.

The order also applies to ex-NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey’s alleged role in the Pearson suits. Maddrey has also been accused in a separate matter of sexual harassment by a now-retired NYPD lieutenant who alleged he forced her to perform “unwanted sexual favors” in return for overtime pay.

Pearson was sued in 2024 by four current and former NYPD employees alleging he sexually harassed one of them and then retaliated against the others when they spoke out.

The city’s Law Department can itself provide legal representation for city workers being sued in relation to their officials duties, but the department determined it couldn’t rep Pearson and others named as co-defendants, including Maddrey, since it was already representing one of his accusers in a separate matter. Instead, the department retained a private law firm, Wilson Elser, to represent Pearson and Maddrey.

Banks said Friday that while Pearson and Maddrey will have have his taxpayer-funded representation pulled, other defendants in the cases, including then-Deputy Inspector Joseph Profeta Joseph Profeta and ex-Chief of Department John Chell, will still receive Law Department representation.

“The City’s own findings confirm that Timothy Pearson abused his authority by sexually harassing subordinates and then used Jeffrey Maddrey to punish supervisors who objected,” John Scola, a lawyer for Pearson’s four accusers. “Despite that determination, the City remains responsible for the damage done to my clients’ careers, and we will continue fighting until they are made whole.”

John Flannery, Pearson’s attorney, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Pearson was among former Mayor Adams’ closest confidants, serving as his public safety adviser at City Hall. He resigned from his post in September 2024 after being snared in several corruption scandals, including a separate alleged assault of several guards at a migrant shelter in October 2023.

Pearson also had his electronic devices seized in fall 2024 as part of several sprawling corruption investigations into the top ranks of the Adams administration. Pearson was not charged in any of those probes.

“It was painfully obvious that Tim Pearson and Jeffrey Maddrey violated the city’s rules, which means that they were not entitled to taxpayers funded representation,” Councilmember Lincoln Restler, who has been very critical of Adams’ backing of the two, said.

“The reckless abuse of power and the disgraceful abuse of public servants by these two gentlemen was an embarrassment and I am relieved that the Mamdani admin has discontinued any taxpayer dollars towards their representation.”

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