Month: April 2022

The man arrested for shooting ten people on a Brooklyn subway train Tuesday will stay in federal custody following a brief initial court appearance Thursday afternoon.  The accused shooter, Frank James, did not enter a plea and was ordered held on a permanent order of detention.  He spoke only briefly during the court appearance, replying “yes” when asked if he understood his rights and to two more questions.

Federal prosecutors wanted James to stay in jail pending trial.  A letter to Judge Roanne Mann from U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said in part: “The defendant committed a premeditated mass shooting on the New York City subway system and then fled the scene, with a stockpile of ammunition and other dangerous items stowed in his storage unit. The defendant presents a severe and ongoing danger to the community, as well as a serious risk of flight, that no set of release conditions can mitigate.” 

James is charged with conducting a violent attack on a mass transportation vehicle. and is accused of firing 33 rounds. Twenty-nine people were injured, including 10 who were shot. James faces a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted, according to prosecutors.

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On Thursday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a 15-week abortion ban bill that shortens the legal window for terminating a pregnancy by over two months.  The bill, which will go into effect on July 1st, will replace a previous one that allowed abortions until 24 weeks of pregnancy.

DeSantis said Thursday in Osceola County at Nacion de Fe: “House Bill 5 protects babies in the womb who have beating hearts, who can move, who can taste, who can see, and who can feel pain. Life is a sacred gift worthy of our protection, and I am proud to sign this great piece of legislation which represents the most significant protections for life in the state’s modern history.”

The Florida bill passed the Senate on March 15 after a 23-15 vote.  It does not include exceptions for mental health, rape, human trafficking or incest; however, it does allow an abortion if it would save the life of a pregnant person or prevent serious injury to them. The law also includes exceptions for fetal abnormalities that are discovered after 15 weeks. In such cases, two doctors must sign off saying the baby will die shortly after birth before an abortion can happen.

Florida had the third-highest abortion rate in the United States in 2019, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with 71,914 procedures performed that year.  Breaking the new law has consequences for violating physicians, including a $5,000 fine and up to five years in prison.

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President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that the United States will send another $800 million worth of weapons to Ukraine, after speaking by phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.  The White House said that the President authorized an additional $800 million in weapons, ammunition and other security assistance to Ukraine. Biden also approved the transfer of additional helicopters to Ukraine.

Biden said in a statement: “The Ukrainian military has used the weapons we are providing to devastating effect. As Russia prepares to intensify its attack in the Donbas region, the United States will continue to provide Ukraine with the capabilities to defend itself.”

Prior to the call with Biden, Zelenskyy wrote on Twitter on Wednesday: “Without additional weapons, this war will turn into an endless bloodbath that will spread misery, suffering and destruction. Mariupol, Bucha, Kramatorsk — the list goes on. No one will stop Russia except Ukraine with heavy weapons.”  He later tweeted that he and Biden had “Assessed Russian war crimes. Discussed [an] additional package of defensive and possible macro-financial aid. Agreed to enhance sanctions.”

Said Biden: “The steady supply of weapons the United States and its allies and partners have provided to Ukraine has been critical in sustaining its fight against the Russian invasion. It has helped ensure that Putin failed in his initial war aims to conquer and control Ukraine. We cannot rest now. As I assured President Zelensky, the American people will continue to stand with the brave Ukrainian people in their fight for freedom.”

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Officials confirmed that 62-year-old Frank James, the man wanted for allegedly opening fire on a rush-hour subway train in Brooklyn, was arrested in Manhattan on Wednesday afternoon, thus ending an over 24-hour-long search. NYPD Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell said police made the arrest in Manhattan’s East Village neighborhood after responding to a crime stoppers tip, and that James was taken into custody without incident.

According to Breon Peace, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, James will face federal charges for Tuesday’s Brooklyn subway shooting in which ten people were shot and wounded, and over a dozen more suffering injuries. In total, 29 people were injured in the attack. James is suspected of popping a smoke grenade on a subway train during the Tuesday morning commute and then pulling a gun and shooting indiscriminately at riders. Police say that James has ties to Wisconsin and rented a van in Philadelphia before the attack, during which he wore a gas mask and a green construction-type vest resembling a transit worker. Police are still investigating the motive behind the attack.

The U.S. Attorney’s office said the charges against James will include use of a dangerous weapon to cause death and serious injury to passengers and employees. James will also be charged with one count of violating a federal law prohibiting terrorist and other violent attacks on mass transportation systems.

James is scheduled to appear in Brooklyn Federal Court on Thursday.

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