Judge denies release of man charged with Morristown stun gun rape

Top, L-R: Superior Court Judge David Ironson, defendant Brian Session. Bottom, L-R: Morris County Assistant Public Defender Joseph Corazza , Morris Assistant Prosecutor Meg Rodriguez, at Zoom hearing for Session, Sept. 16, 2020. Screenshot by Kevin Coughlin
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A man facing life behind bars if convicted of a stun gun attack and rape in Morristown must stay in the Morris County Jail until courts reopen and he can be tried, a judge ruled Wednesday during a virtual hearing.

Superior Court Judge David Ironson at Zoom hearing for Brian Session, Sept. 16, 2020. Screenshot by Kevin Coughlin

Brian K. Session of East Orange has been held for nearly 1,000 days since his arrest shortly after the 2018 incident.

Morris County Assistant Public Defender Joseph Corazza had requested Session’s release under house arrest to his fiancée in Linden until the trial begins, arguing the long detention is unconstitutional and hinders defense preparations.

But Session’s lengthy rap sheet, and trial delays wrought by the pandemic and by his lawyers, weighed against his release, said Superior Court Judge David Ironson.

“Given the totality of the circumstances, the court finds the defendant’s speedy trial rights have not been violated,” the judge said.

Corazza said he and Session must review 1,000 pages of documents and many hours of video evidence. The lawyer said he’s been able to meet only once with his client since taking over the case in February, and noted he fears catching the coronavirus if he re-visits Session at the county lockup.

Brian K. Session, who is charged with raping a Morristown woman after attacking her with a stun gun, listens to Zoom hearing, Sept. 16, 2020. Screenshot by Kevin Coughlin

“He is entitled to a proper defense,” Corazza said, adding the prolonged incarceration has kept Session from meeting his 2-year-old daughter, born while he was in custody.

But Judge Ironson said nothing prevents Corazza from consulting via phone with Session, who observed Wednesday’s hearing without comment, via a video hookup from the jail.

Morris Assistant Public Defender Joseph Corazza at Zoom hearing for Brian Session, Sept. 16, 2020. Screenshot by Kevin Coughlin

State law says defendants must be released from detention if they are not brought to trial within 270 days: Prosecutors have 90 days to obtain an indictment and another 180 to get to court. But there are exceptions, Ironson said.

The pandemic is one.

Another: Before the health crisis closed New Jersey courts in March 2020, Session’s public defenders–he has had three–requested adjournments to familiarize themselves with the voluminous evidence.

And public safety is paramount. Morris County Assistant Prosecutor Meg Rodriguez said defendants can be held if they pose a “serious risk of danger, flight or obstruction.”

Session, 50, has at least 15 criminal convictions, and multiple prison stints, starting in the 1990s, Judge Ironson said.

In May 2018, Session was indicted on 30 counts, including first-degree sexual assault and first-degree kidnapping. He also is charged with burglaries and attempted burglaries in Morristown in November and December 2017.

Assistant Prosecutor Meg Rodriguez, Public Defender Sean O'Connor, and defendant Brian K. Session listen to Judge Stuart Minkowitz, Jan. 24, 2018. Photo by Kevin Coughlin
Assistant Prosecutor Meg Rodriguez, Public Defender Sean O’Connor, and defendant Brian K. Session listen to Judge Stuart Minkowitz, Jan. 24, 2018. Photo by Kevin Coughlin

Authorities say Session was burglarizing the victim’s apartment when she returned home from shopping just after 11 a.m. on Jan. 18, 2018.

The assailant sexually assaulted the woman after demanding her credit card and ATM pin, smashing her cell phone and iPad, attacking her with a stun gun, and tying her up, the woman told investigators. Her wrist, finger and ankles were injured.

Session denied the rape, but admitted binding the victim and carrying a Taser stun gun, according to court records. He told police the victim surprised him during the burglary. Authorities announced his arrest two days after the alleged attack.

To spare the victim the trauma of a trial, the prosecutor’s office in offered in April to drop rape and weapons charges in exchange for a guilty plea to kidnapping and burglaries.  Session rejected the deal, which would have sent him to jail for at least 15 years.

The pandemic has negated a Sept. 21 trial start.  Superior Court trials in Morris County may resume by January, Rodriguez said. Citing pandemic rules issued by the state Supreme Court, Ironson said prosecutors have until February 2021 to try Session.

“Mr. Session will get his day in court,” the judge said.

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