NEW YORK — Lawyers representing the 62-year-old man accused of the allegedly premeditated rush-hour traffic attack that left nearly two dozen injured, 10 of them shot, in Brooklyn on April 12 say the FBI questioned and searched unconstitutionally imprisoned his client, Frank James, in his cell earlier this week, court documents obtained Thursday show.
James, whose alleged smoke grenade and shooting attack on the N train in Sunset Park triggered the worst travel disruption the city has seen in 20 years,
In a letter sent Thursday to U.S. Judge Roanne L. Mann of the Eastern District of New York, attorneys Mia Eisner-Grynberg and Deirdre D. von Dornum allege that FBI agents went to James’ cell at the Detention Center. Metropolitan in Brooklyn on Tuesday, questioned him, took DNA samples and told him to sign certain documents.
It was 12 days after he was appointed legal counsel, the lawyers say, and they received no advance notice of the FBI’s intentions.
“Contrary to standard practice, the government committed this intrusion without notice to counsel, depriving us of the opportunity to be heard or to be present.” The government also did not provide any subsequent notice to the attorney,” the attorneys said.
In addition, the search warrant approving the taking of DNA samples from James was not served, the attorneys said. They claim they only got a copy of the warrant when they asked, after James told them what happened and the search was complete, the letter to the judge says.
“It is standard practice in this District that when the government obtains a search warrant for buccal swabs from a represented defendant after arraignment, the government informs the attorney of the same prior to his execution and offers an opportunity to be present.” , the attorneys wrote.”This serves as a safeguard to protect the rights of the defendants represented. Here, because the government failed to notify the attorney prior to questioning and searching Mr. James, his practice was at risk of violations of Mr. James’ fundamental constitutional rights under the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments.”
The lawyers have applied for an injunction to compel the government to hand over to them the underlying affidavit on which the order was issued so that they can request the suppression of any evidence of any kind that was collected during that meeting earlier this week.
An email request for comment to the Eastern District was not immediately returned.
James was arrested, after allegedly tipping off his location to police, on April 13 in the East Village, more than 24 hours after his alleged crimes rocked the city, already grappling with a spike in violent subway incidents. down to its core.
The suspect made his first appearance in federal court in Brooklyn later that day, as federal, state and local law enforcement agencies worked to piece together details of the 62-year-old’s life. He was ordered held without bail.
The 62-year-old man wanted in connection with the shooting at a Brooklyn subway station that left 10 people wounded during rush hour Tuesday morning is in custody, New York authorities announced Wednesday.
James did not speak at the hearing other than to nod when asked by a judge if he understood the federal charge against him. He waived his right to a preliminary hearing and was ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation at that time.
“The defendant’s attack was completely premeditated. The day before the shooting,
defendant picked up a U-Haul in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which drove over the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge and into Brooklyn in the early morning hours of April 12,” prosecutors said in the arrest memorandum. “Defendant arrived to Brooklyn prepared with all the weapons and tools it needed to carry out the massive attack.”
Those items, according to court documents, included a Glock 17 pistol purchased by the suspect, a container of gasoline, a torch and fireworks containing explosive powder. All were later found on the platform of the 36th Street and Fourth Avenue subway station.
Law enforcement officers recovered a cache of weapons and ammunition from other locations allegedly controlled by James, prosecutors said. An empty magazine for a Glock pistol, a taser, a high-capacity rifle magazine and a canister of blue smoke were found in the apartment where he stayed before leaving for Brooklyn. They also found a propane tank, a pillow and a chair in the U-Haul linked to the scene. The propane was being used with a heater, according to a senior law enforcement official.
From James’s storage unit, investigators recovered 9mm ammunition, a threaded 9mm pistol barrel that allows a silencer or silencer to be attached, targets and .223 caliber ammunition, used with an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle.
As for the gun he had in the subway to allegedly carry out the attack, investigators said he had three magazines that held 30 rounds each, up to 90 bullets in total. Some officials also said they believe a smoke grenade may have accidentally gone off prematurely on that train, causing James to allegedly start shooting.
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