A key City Hall ally said he’s backing Mayor Eric Adams’ pick for the city’s top lawyer — even though the two publicly fought three years ago during a high-profile legal battle over an Upper West Side shelter.
Shams DaBaron, a homeless rights advocate who once resided at the Lucerne Hotel, clashed with Randy Mastro, an attorney who was then representing a group of residents threatening to sue to evict homeless people living there. As the two sparred publicly, Mastro sent private investigators posing as plumbers to photograph DaBaron, seeking to prove he had moved out of the Lucerne and should no longer be part of the litigation surrounding it.
DaBaron is now on Mastro’s side despite their history, and frequently appears with Adams at housing events and announcements. He told Gothamist that he supports the mayor’s decision to nominate Mastro as New York City’s next corporation counsel.
“While some might highlight past events, such as my personal experiences and the situation at the Lucerne, to question Randy Mastro’s suitability for Corporation Counsel, I encourage a broader perspective,” DaBaron wrote in a text message. “His legal acumen and deep understanding of complex legal challenges make him an ideal candidate.”
The about-face comes the day before Mastro is set to appear at a City Council hearing on his candidacy for the city’s top attorney job. It may also help him parry criticism over one of several high-profile cases for which he has drawn scrutiny.
Mastro, a former deputy under Mayor Rudy Giuliani, provoked widespread criticism for sending the investigators to photograph DaBaron in March 2021. A local lawmaker called it “stalking,” and a city spokesperson in then-Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration said the conduct was an “absolute egregious invasion of this individual’s privacy.”
Mastro said sending the investigators to photograph DaBaron was necessary to make his case at the time. But he said he found DaBaron a formidable foe.
“I just have tremendous respect for him as somebody who’s lived that experience and is such a compelling advocate on those issues,” said Mastro.
DaBaron, who also goes by Ramone Buford and “Da Homeless Hero,” told Gothamist in 2021 that he found the episode “horrifying” and feared for his safety. In a court filing, Mastro described DaBaron’s concerns as “ludicrous” and added that DaBaron “so obviously craves the limelight.”
In the end, Mastro’s side was victorious, and the men were kicked out of the hotel.
DaBaron said he and Mastro have now buried the hatchet. But his endorsement caught some other advocates involved in the Lucerne showdown off guard.
Corinne Low, executive director of the Open Hearts Initiative, which was founded to support the Lucerne shelter residents amid the lawsuit, said she was surprised to see DaBaron aligning with Mastro. She said her organization plans to submit testimony opposing his nomination at Tuesday’s Council hearing.
“This is someone who doesn’t have the character to be within a mile of a mayoral administration and I think it’s shocking they’re trying to whitewash his record,” Lowe said of Mastro.
Adams announced his pick for corporation counsel last month, as state and federal investigations of Adams’ 2021 campaign and a sexual assault lawsuit against him were ongoing.
Several of Mastro’s other past cases and clients have drawn scrutiny. He previously defended Chevron in a multimillion-dollar pollution lawsuit and then-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie during the Bridgegate scandal. Mastro has also represented landlords attempting to dismantle state rent regulations; a major property owner accused of discriminating against apartment applicants with housing vouchers; and the state of New Jersey in its attempt to block the implementation of congestion pricing in Manhattan.
He has additionally served on the board of the nonprofit Legal Aid Society and chaired the board of the good government group Citizens Union.
DaBaron said he decided to back Mastro for corporation counsel after the two shared a meal at Pete’s Tavern in Manhattan last week. He told Gothamist that he did not discuss the decision to endorse Mastro with Adams or other administration officials ahead of the meeting.
Mastro said he did not discuss it with the mayor or members of his administration, either.
“[Adams] doesn’t tell me what to do,” DaBaron said. “I get offended when people assume that I, as a Black man that’s formerly homeless, don’t have the capacity to think for myself. Many of the people who bring up that argument are people who claim to want to defy the stigmas or remove the stigmas attributed to formerly homeless people.”
A spokesperson for Adams did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.