The New York City native who tossed smoke cannisters inside a packed Brooklyn subway car before opening fire on stunned commuters last year has pleaded guilty to terrorism and gun charges.
(Bloomberg) — The New York City native who tossed smoke cannisters inside a packed Brooklyn subway car before opening fire on stunned commuters last year has pleaded guilty to terrorism and gun charges.
Frank James appeared in federal court in Brooklyn on Tuesday to enter the plea before US District Judge William Kuntz. James faces a sentence of as long as life in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 when he is sentenced.
James, who authorities say spent years planning the April 12 attack, said the decision to change his plea to guilty had been made with a clear head, and that he did not believe he had any viable defenses.
“Are you willing to give up your right to a trial?” the judge asked.
“Yes, I am,” James responded.
James, 63, who was arrested April 13 following a 30-hour manhunt, admitted firing a Glock handgun at least 33 times during the incident. There were no fatalities, but 10 people were shot and 13 others were injured in the ensuing panic. He was charged with 10 counts of terrorism, one for each person shot, and one gun-related count.
The attack occurred as New Yorkers began returning to their usual commutes following months of staying off subways because of the pandemic. It also showed the vulnerability of the transit system.
James’s lawyer, Mia Eisner-Grynberg, said in a court filing last month that her client intended to change his plea to guilty. The one-paragraph letter did not elaborate on the reason for changing his earlier plea of not guilty.
Seeking Long Sentence
Prosecutors said in a Dec. 29 court filing that federal sentencing guidelines would likely result in a recommended sentence of as long as 37 years behind bars if James “clearly demonstrates acceptance of responsibility.” Failure to admit responsibility could result in a recommended term of as long as life, the US said. Either way, the government said it would seek a longer sentence than what is recommended by the guidelines.
Surveillance cameras caught James entering the subway system in Brooklyn the morning of April 12, dressed as a maintenance worker, prosecutors said. After boarding a Manhattan-bound N train in Brooklyn’s Sunset Park, witnesses said he donned a gas mask before tossing two smoke cannisters into the crowded subway car and then opening fire.
After the attack, police said James escaped onto another train. He was finally arrested in Manhattan’s East Village the next day after someone called a police tip line. His defense lawyers said James placed the call.
Key to Van
In a criminal complaint filed after his arrest, federal prosecutors detailed a litany of evidence linking James to the attack. Authorities found two bags that the gunman left behind on the train. One held a Glock semiautomatic, a container of gasoline, a torch, a key to a U-Haul vehicle and multiple bank cards, the US said. The other had fireworks filled with black-powder explosives.
One of the bank cards belonged to James, authorities said, and records show the U-Haul van was rented by “Frank Robert James.” New York police officials also found surveillance footage showing the van entering Brooklyn the morning of the attack. It was later found parked two blocks away from an N train subway station.
James was born in New York City, but had addresses in Philadelphia and Milwaukee, according to authorities. Police said he had an extensive arrest record, including nine in New York from 1992 to 1998 for possession of burglary tools, a criminal sex act and theft of service. He also had three arrests in New Jersey from 1991 to 2007, including for trespassing, larceny and disorderly conduct.
James had argued in a November court filing that the federal criminal case should be dismissed because the shooting was only a violation of state law. The federal criminal statutes don’t apply, he argued, because they cover attacks targeting mass transit systems rather than passengers. James also argued the government was improperly adding so-called aggravating elements to the list of alleged offenses.
“Application of the aggravator to this offense would mean that an ordinary assault — every slashing, stabbing, or punch to the head — would be a federal offense subject to a life sentence, simply because it was committed on the subway or in a subway station or terminal,” James’s lawyer said in the filing.
The judge denied the motion on Dec. 21. The judge also denied James’s motion to transfer the case to another district on the grounds that he couldn’t get a fair trial in Brooklyn.
The case is US v. James, 22-cr-214, US District Court for the Eastern District of New York (Brooklyn).
–With assistance from Patricia Hurtado.
(Updates with detail from the hearing.)
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