City Council President Michael Ross on Monday filed a motion recommending that Councillor Chuck Turner be removed from the 13-member body, effective Dec. 3, as Turner vowed to fight to keep his office.

Turner was convicted last month of accepting a $1,000 bribe and lying to FBI agents about it. He has maintained his innocence and asked for the council to postpone any decisions until after his January sentencing date.

"We have but one judicial system in this country, and whether we personally agree with the verdict or not, a jury of his peers found Councilor Turner guilty of very serious crimes," Ross said in his letter to colleagues.

He added: "We are not above the law and none of us is above the rules we have established as a body. If we act as if we are, this body loses its credibility, its integrity and the trust of the people we serve. Many are cynical of government as it is, we cannot add to their mistrust."

Turner hit back at Ross and the other councillors, saying he had a "better" record on "bread and butter issues" than his colleagues. He cited voted against providing tax breaks to Liberty Mutual, his vote against an arbitration award because he disagreed with paying firemen for taking drug tests and voted against a pay raise for council members in 2006.

"These councillors are going to sit in judgment of me? Come on," Turner said in a brief interview in his office on Monday evening.

A 3 p.m. hearing on Turner's fate is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 1, with a vote on Ross's motion afterwards. Turner supporters are holding a rally at 2:15 p.m.

Ross said he had held off on such a hearing two years ago, when Turner was indicted, because Turner deserved his day in court. "There's been no rush to judgment here," he said. "I don't relish this. I'm saddened by these events."

Indeed, many councillors consider Turner a friend they have worked closely with. Both City Councillors At-Large Felix Arroyo and John Connolly filed disclosure forms with the city clerk's office on Monday, in order to dispel any appearance of a potential conflict of interest: Connolly because he had served on six committees with him and represents Turner's District 7; Arroyo because he was an employee of Turner's from January 2000 to August 2004.

A vote to discipline or remove a councillor requires a two-thirds vote. The city's attorney, Bill Sinnott, wrote in a memo to Ross that Turner should not vote because he could run afoul of conflict-of-interest laws.

He can speak on his behalf and have an attorney present, Sinnott wrote.

Turner said he checked with the State Ethics Commission on Monday and they sided with Sinnott.

If Turner is voted off the council, a special election is expected to be scheduled.

Turner is backing Gov. Deval Patrick's political director, Tito Jackson, as his successor. Other candidates whose names have been floated include Candace Sealey, U.S. Congressman Michael Capuano's liaison in Dorchester and Mattapan, and Monica Dean, former chief-of-staff to ex-Sen. Dianne Wilkerson, among others.