State Sen. Malcolm Smith is dropping his bizarre bid to use convicted ex-Queens Sen. Shirley Huntley to prove his innocence at his upcoming corruption trial next week.
Gerald Shargel, a lawyer for Smith (D-Queens), confirmed the flip-flop to White Plains federal Judge Kenneth Karas during a hearing Friday. When asked to elaborate, Shargel remained vague, saying only that he and his legal team are “exercising our collective judgment, and we decided not to go down that road.”
As The Post reported two weeks ago, Smith — who is claiming he was framed by the government — wanted to submit as evidence two secret conversations that Huntley recorded with him for the feds.
“On these recordings, Huntley proposes various unlawful acts in which she hoped to ensnare Smith. Each time, Smith rejected her criminal overtures,” Shargel wrote.
Smith, one of the state’s top Democrats, was busted last year in a failed scheme to secure a spot on the Republican line for the 2013 mayoral race allegedly through the bribery of former Queens Councilman Dan Halloran and two other GOP leaders.