Frank James, man charged in New York City subway shooting, wants trial moved to Chicago
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The man charged in the New York City subway shooting that left 10 people hurt this past spring wants his trial moved to Chicago.
Attorneys for Frank James said their client can't get a fair trial in New York City – and Chicago is "demographically similar."
The attorneys argue nonstop media coverage of the crime – along with New York City Mayor Adams' news conferences where he said, "We got him," make it impossible to find impartial jurors.
The NYPD said on April 12, James attacked straphangers in the tunnel between 59th and 36th Street N Train stations in the Sunset Park neighborhood in Brooklyn, shooting 10 people and injuring 13 more.
Police say when the train was stopped in the tunnel, a man in a gas mask unleashed smoke bombs and unloaded 33 shots.
Police said James left behind a bag with a hatchet, two gas canisters and a single automatic handgun that apparently jammed, perhaps saving lives. James was arrested the day after the shooting St. Mark's Place and First Avenue in the East Village section of Manhattan, after police received a Crime Stoppers tip.
James had previously lived in Milwaukee, and had moved Philadelphia shortly before the shooting. A man named Frank James had also lived at the Aragon Arms Hotel in Chicago – at 4917 N. Kenmore Ave. in the Uptown neighborhood – from April 2015 to March 2017.
Right now, James' trial in New York is slated to begin on Feb. 27 of next year.
