Brooklyn shooting update: Frank James ordered to be held behind bars in first federal court appearance

The Brooklyn subway shooting, the latest in a string of high-profile violent incidents in New York City, is focusing scrunity on mayor Eric Adams’s public safety—and his many controversial plans for the sprawling, deeply unequal metropolis he governs.

At the beginning of the year, the mayor announced plans to bring back a controversial plainclothes police unit to combat gun violence, even though the squad was previously criticised for racial profiling and brutal tactics.

Others have noted that on the mayor has directed a large portions of police resources towards clearing out homeless encampments, including one such camp that was swept the day before the shooting.

Critics have argued this policy does little to help those impacted and further destabilises life for the unhoused.

The man accused of bringing terror to the New York City transport system has been ordered to be held without bail in custody.

Frank James, 62, made a brief appearance at a federal courthouse in Brooklyn on Thursday, just under 24 hours after he was arrested in Manhattan’s East Village.

Assistant US Attorney Sara K. Winik told the court that Mr James had caused panic to New Yorkers’ morning commute in a way not seen since 9/11.

“The defendant terrifyingly opened fire on passengers on a crowded subway train, interrupting their morning commute in a way the city hasn’t seen in more than 20 years.”

Bevan Hurley has the story.

Donald Trump Jr has spent the last few days creating an elaborate conspiracy theory that surveilance cameras malfunctioned during the hunt for accused Brooklyn subway shooter Frank James because of the “leftist narrative.”

“Why do the security cameras never seem to work when the reality of the crime isn’t good for the leftist narrative???” he wrote on Twitter.

Instead, the former president’s son has valorised the New York Police Department for their work on the case.

“Great work NYPD,” he added. “Despite the constant attacks from the leftist leaders of New York you guys still get it done… unlike the FBI leadership who seem far more interested in creating crimes and letting the actual bad guys go.”

In reality, the cameras were already failing two days before the shooting, a problem that New York City Transit workers flagged about the security feeds, which are monitored by the NYPD.

Conservative commentators have been arguing that Mr James, whose YouTube channel at times contains videos with ideas about Black nationalism, has been getting soft treatment in the media and courts compared to right-wing suspects.

In fact, the 62-year-old has been charged with the same kind of penalties as other terrorists who target mass transit.

In January, businesswoman Michelle Alyssa Go was pushed onto the subway tracks by a homeless man at the busy Times Square subway, which regularly has a large police presence.

Commentators are arguing the incident is a reminder that amid calls to send even more police into the subway system, their deployment doesn’t inherently mean a safer system.

Instead, such plans for the NYPD, which already has an astounding $10.4 billion budget, could lead to further harassment of low-income people like turnstile-jumpers and street vendors by police.

“The Brooklyn shooting is a terrifying incident that could have been a true tragedy. It’s good that the suspect has been apprehended,” MSNBC Opinion Columnist Hayes Brown recently argued. “But the most likely outcome is that, yet again, America’s cities will be basing their anti-crime policy on what’s easiest for their leaders, not what’s best for their residents.”

Frank James, the suspected Brooklyn subway shooter, had a lengthy criminal record, being arrested numerous times as he bounced between Newark, Philadelphia, and other cities across the US.

But the charges were never serious enough to earn him a felony, which would’ve stopped him from buying a gun, according to police.

A 21-year-old Syrian man, who played a role in the capture of the suspected Brooklyn subway shooter on Wednesday, won hearts after he described how he saw Frank James through one of the security cameras and followed him.

Zack Tahhan, who moved from Syria to the US five years ago, recognised the alleged shooter while he was fixing a camera outside a convenience store in the East Village in Manhattan.

He was hailed as a hero — with #Thankyouzack trending on Twitter — after he followed the man and alerted police officers.

Read more in Stuti Mishra’s piece.

Police in Grand Rapids, Michigan have released several videos showing a police officer’s interaction with Patrick Lyoya moments before the officer fatally shot him earlier this month.

The video shows the officer – a seven-year veteran who has not been named – struggling to arrest Lyoya, a 26-year-old Black man, before holding him to the ground and fatally shooting him on 4 April.

Gustaf Kilander and Alex Woodward have the details on the controversial killing.

The tip that led to the arrest of the Brooklyn subway shooting suspect Frank James was called in by Mr James himself.

Law enforcement officials said that Mr James, 62, called Crime Stoppers and gave his location before his arrest in New York’s East Village neighbourhood on Wednesday.

Police said at an earlier press conference that Mr James was tipped to be at a McDonald’s restaurant on 6th Street and 1st Avenue. He was found around the corner and arrested without incident.

Justin Vallejo has more.