Man Pleads Not Guilty to Brooklyn Subway Shooting That Wounded 10
Aauthorities say he drove from Philadelphia and unleashed smoke bombs and dozens of bullets in a train full of morning commuters as it approached a Brooklyn station
By Tom Hays ••
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Onlookers watch as police and emergency responders gather at the site of a reported shooting of multiple people outside of the 36 St subway station on April 12, 2022 in Brooklyn.
A man charged with shooting up a New York City subway train last month in an attack that wounded 10 people pleaded not guilty Friday to terrorism and other charges.
Frank James entered the plea in federal court in Brooklyn, where U.S, District Judge William F. Kuntz began the proceeding by asking James, “How are you doing today?”
Asked about his educational background, James said he attended public schools in the Bronx before earning a GED. He said he also attended some trade schools.
James, 62, is facing charges of committing a terrorist attack or other violence against a mass transportation system and discharging a firearm during a violent crime. Both counts carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The defendant was arrested April 13, about 30 hours after authorities say he drove from Philadelphia and unleashed smoke bombs and dozens of bullets in a train full of morning commuters as it approached a Brooklyn station. The shooting victims ranged in age from 16 to 60; all survived.
Authorities said James’s bank card, cellphone and a key to a van he had rented were found at the shooting scene. Police also said they found the 9mm Glock semiautomatic handgun used in the shooting and traced it to James.
Defense attorney Mia Eisner-Grynberg had cautioned at at the time of James' arrest not to rush to judgment and noted that James alerted police to his whereabouts. He was arrested in Manhattan’s East Village after he called a tip line saying he was at a fast food restaurant in that section of the city.
The New York Police Department said suspect Frank James was arrested Wednesday afternoon in Manhattan.
A motive for the attack is unclear. In numerous rants he posted on YouTube, James, who is Black, made bigoted remarks about people of various backgrounds and railed against New York Mayor Eric Adams and complained about mental health care he received in the city years ago.
James, who's being held without bail, is due back in court July 25.
NBC New York
Police and first responders swarm the Brooklyn neighborhood of Sunset Park in New York, after multiple people were shot or hurt at the height of morning rush hour, April 12, 2022.
Derek French
Injured subway riders seen on the platform of the 36th Street station in Brooklyn’s Sunset Park neighborhood in New York, April 12, 2022. At least five people have been shot by a man in a gas mask and orange construction vest, according to the NYPD.
NBC New York
Police and first responders swarm the Brooklyn neighborhood of Sunset Park in New York, after multiple people were shot or hurt at the height of morning rush hour, April 12, 2022.
NBC New York
Police and first responders swarm the Brooklyn neighborhood of Sunset Park in New York, after multiple people were shot or hurt at the height of morning rush hour, April 12, 2022.
NBC New York
Police and first responders swarm the Brooklyn neighborhood of Sunset Park in New York, after multiple people were shot or hurt at the height of morning rush hour, April 12, 2022.
NBC New York
Police and first responders swarm the Brooklyn neighborhood of Sunset Park in New York, after multiple people were shot or hurt at the height of morning rush hour, April 12, 2022.
Getty Images
Members of the New York Police Department patrol the streets after at least 13 people were injured during a rush-hour shooting at a subway station in the New York borough of Brooklyn on April 12, 2022, where authorities said “several undetonated devices” were recovered amid chaotic scenes. – Ambulances lined the street outside the 36th Street subway station, where a New York police spokeswoman told AFP officers responded to a 911 call of a person shot at 8:27 am (1227 GMT). The suspect was still at large, according to Manhattan borough president Mark Levine. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP) (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)
Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images
Emergency personnel seen in Brooklyn’s Sunset Park neighborhood after at least 16 people were injured during a rush-hour shooting in New York, April 12, 2022.
