Former Mayor Eric Adams has accused his successor's administration of playing politics by withholding his taxpayer-funded defense in a lawsuit accusing him of sexual assault three decades ago. The city Law Department has filed court papers seeking to stop representing Adams in the case, arguing that newly unearthed records show he was not acting within the scope of his employment as a transit cop at the time of the allegations. However, Adams' new private attorney, Alan Futerfas, argued that the move to remove Adams from the case was a political decision and that taxpayers should pay for private attorneys. The decision could create a situation similar to Andrew Cuomo's sex harassment lawsuits, which have cost New Yorkers tens of millions of dollars.