Man Pleads Guilty, Gets 1 Year in East Hampton Shooting Case

Frank A. Hanna, who was arrested in May after an accidental shooting in East Hampton leading to a high-speed chase to bring the victim to Southampton Hospital, has taken a plea deal in the case.

Suffolk County Criminal Court Judge Mark D. Cohen sentenced Hanna to one year in prison on a charge of second-degree assault, a felony, on Sept. 10, just a few days after Hanna pleaded guilty.

The judge issued an order of protection for the victim for a term of eight years, according to court records.

Hanna will owe $375 in fines and fees imposed. A mandatory surcharge hearing will be held in May.

Hanna, who recently turned 30, has been held on bail at the Suffolk County jail in Riverside since he was arrested about a week after the shooting.

The victim in the shooting, 20-year-old Frederic Stephens, of East Hampton, told police Hanna accidentally shot him.

Meanwhile, a case against Kimberly Delrio, who drove Stephens to Southampton Hospital in the midst of a police chase on the night of the shooting, remains pending.

Delrio was behind the wheel of a Hyundai Elantra that village police pulled over for allegedly speeding through East Hampton Village on May 24 at about 8:30 p.m. One of the passengers, Stephens, jumped out and told police he had been shot. He soon got back into the car and it took off, leading police on a chase for 11 miles to Southampton Hospital.

When the chase ended, investigators discovered Stephens had been shot in the basement of Hanna's house on Springs-Fireplace Road with a .44-caliber handgun.

Hanna was not arrested until May 30, when he turned himself in to police. That same day, Stephens, recently released from the hospital, gave police a statement, in which he said that Delrio had picked him up with another woman to go to Patchogue before the shooting occurred. He asked them to stop first to pick up his cousin at Hanna's house. He told police he called his cousin first to let him know he was on his way.

As Stephens walked to the house, he was met by another young man, who walked with him toward the back of the house. Stephens opened the Bilko door and went down the stairs.

"As soon as I see Frankie I realize he's holding a revolver in his hand," Stephens told police, according to court records Patch reviewed. "Frankie had the revolver in his right hand and he had it point at my head."

The other man, who was behind him, told Hanna to put the gun away, "before you hurt someone," according to Stephens', who said he echoed the sentiment.

"As I stepped to the side and Frankie was lowering the revolver it went off," Stephens told police. "I remember seeing the spark from the gun. I saw a hole in my right arm and I freak out. I started bleeding all over the place."

Stephens ran toward the driveway with Hanna chasing after him, yelling, "Did I really shoot you?," Stephens said. "I remember Frankie saying 'Get to the hospital.'"

"I was afraid I was going to black out so I told her to get me to the hospital as fast as possible," Stephens said. "Even after the cop stopped us I told her to get to the hospital. I was afraid I was gonna die right there."

The chase involved at least four police agencies and caused a brief lockdown at the hospital.

Stephens was transferred later that night to Stony Brook University Medical Center to repair a torn artery in his arm.

While hospitalized, he told police he received calls from Hanna. "Every time we spoke he apologized for shooting me," he said.

On May 31, Hanna pleaded not guilty to felony charges of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon and second-degree assault, and second-degree menacing, a misdemeanor, at his arraignment in East Hampton Town Justice Court.

, Hanna's case was ultimately transferred to Suffolk County Criminal Court, where he was arraigned on a single charge of second-degree assault in early August. The judge set new bail at $10,000, but Hanna remained at the Suffolk County jail.

Delrio, who is 22 and lives in Springs, was taken into custody the night of the shooting, but released with an appearance ticket on misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and fleeing a police officer. Police later added felony charge of felony reckless endangerment in the first-degree. Though she did not appear for her first court date, she pleaded not guilty to charges on July 5.

Village Police Chief Jerry Larsen maintained the chase could have killed someone along the road.

But, Stephens' mother hailed Delrio as a hero, while she attended Hanna's initial court appearance.