Law & Order actor Isaiah Stokes claims 'his life is in danger' at Rikers Island after being beat up in protective custody - as he faces 25 years-to-life over daylight execution

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Law & Order actor Isaiah Stokes has appeared in court where his defense attorney pleaded for him to be moved out of Rikers Island jail as 'his life is in danger'.

The 43-year-old has been in custody since July 2021 after he was charged with second degree murder and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon following a fatal shooting in February 2021.

Prosecutors have accused him of firing 11 shots at Tyrone Jones, 37, after approaching his white rented Jeep Cherokee and shooting him multiple times in the face and head.

The actor appeared in Queens Supreme Court on Tuesday, handcuffed and wearing a jail-issued beige jumper and khaki trousers, alongside his defense attorney Victoria Brown-Douglas.

Isaiah Stokes, 43, appeared in Queens Supreme Court on Tuesday as he faces 25-years-to-life over daylight execution of Tyrone Jones, 37.

Stokes appeared handcuffed and wearing a jail-issued beige jumper and khaki trousers, alongside his defense attorney Victoria Brown-Douglas

She asked the court to move her client out of the infamous Rikers Island jail as he has been repeatedly beaten up despite being in protective custody and suffered a cracked tooth.

But Supreme Court Justice Kenneth Holder said he did not have the power to do that and told her to take it up with the Department of Corrections.

'His life is in danger at Rikers Island, his tooth was cracked,' defense attorney Brown-Douglas said.

'A quarter of his front tooth is broken off and this happened while he was in protective custody.'

She then asked the court for Stokes to be moved to the Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center or to the west facility of Rikers Island which is a 'more secure environment.'

But Justice Holder said: 'Since he is there and you're telling me he is getting assaulted I would suggest you take it up with the Department of Corrections.

'I personally don't have any ability to tell the Department of Corrections to move your client to a different facility.

Stokes is accused of firing at Jones (pictured) 11  times after approaching his white rented Jeep Cherokee and shooting him multiple times in the face and head 

'He is making an allegation that in protective custody, people are able to get to him. That's a very serious allegation.'

He also pointed to Stokes' exclusive interview with DailyMail.com where the actor shared his frustrations about the delay in his case.

'I find it interesting you indicated you denied your involvement in the execution-style shooting and that you blamed ineffective counsel in this case which has seen you incarcerated for two and a half years,' Justice Holder added.

'Your new attorney Ms Brown was assigned in July. I see you're saying I am not guilty, I am super innocent.

'Everything you said in this article can be used against you in trial. It may all come back to bite you.'

Defense attorney Brown-Douglas told the court she advised against the interview and informed Stokes he should remain silent. Stokes is set to appear in court again on May 3.

In an interview with DailyMail.com last month from inside the Rikers Island Chapel at the Robert N. Davoren Complex, one of 10 facilities on the island, Stokes declared his innocence.

He blasted the legal and prison systems for allowing him to remain locked up for so long – still with no trial date.

'I'm not guilty, I'm super innocent,' he said. 'This is my first time ever being in jail. I never did juvenile detention centers or anything like that.

'The issue I'm facing now is trying to be someplace safe. It's a very, very uncomfortable environment, it's dangerous.'

Stokes' defense attorney Victoria Brown-Douglas (left) asked for him to the Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center or to the west facility of Rikers Island which is 'more secure'

Brown-Douglas said Stokes had been repeatedly beaten up despite being in protective custody and suffered a cracked tooth

Stokes faces a three-count indictment following the fatal shooting and if convicted, he could be sentenced to up to 25 years-to-life in prison.

He played Mozzy in 50 Cent's TV series Power in 2019 and had parts in Boardwalk Empire in 2011 and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in 2009. He also records music under the name I$AIAH.

The actor told DailyMail.com that he believes that his situation will make him 'one of the greats' if he gets acquitted, but he believes he could be a target because of his fame.

'I'm not the first person to be in this predicament', he said. 'When I think about my situation, I think about Snoop Dogg. He's been charged with murder, he got off and had a beautiful career.

'I think about Nelson Mandela. I think about Lil Boosie. He was charged with capital murder and he made it out of that situation. And now he's back to being successful.

'I feel like I'm one of the greats. I'm only going through what successful people go through.

'Falling down is the easy part, getting up is the hard part, bouncing back is the hard part. A lot of people don't bounce back and they accept defeat.

'I'm a winner. I have to win. I have no choice.'

When asked about Jones and how he plans to defend himself at trial, Stokes declined to go into further detail or confirm if he knew his alleged victim.

But responding to whether he had a message for Jones's family if he was acquitted, he said: 'All I would say to the victims family is God Bless, God Bless him. It's not up to me. It's up to God.

'What I'm accused of is super whack. Whack with a cape on. But I believe everything happens for a reason. I believe that this was a blessing in disguise.

'I don't feel like the evidence that they have against me right now is enough to leave anybody in jail for 30 months at a time. Prosecutors and the DA are always going to try to paint the worst picture. But this ain't the right one.'

Stokes is currently incarcerated at the Robert N. Davoren Complex (RNDC) on Rikers Island 

He appeared in an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in 2009

Stokes plays character Mozzy in season 6 episode 7 of the popular Starz TV series Power 

The actor claims that he is struggling to fight his case as the prosecution have only handed over 'bits and pieces' of the evidence against him.

He ditched his initial lawyer after a 'conflict of interest' over his bail application, which was set at $15million and has taken aim at his new lawyer, saying she has only met him twice in six months.

'It is virtually impossible to fight my case when I haven't received a complete discovery from the prosecutors. It makes it extremely hard for me. My bail is astronomical and quite excessive. But the bigger issue is the system.'

Stokes was drinking champagne with 50 Cent and other musicians and actors on a red carpet the night before his arrest in 2021, telling DailyMail.com it was a 'shock' to both him and the rapper.

He blamed the legal and prison system, claiming that African Americans are assumed 'guilty until proven innocent', rather than the other way around.

'I went from drinking champagne and eating hors d'oeuvres to being on Rikers Island,' he said. 'It was definitely a shock.'

The actor says that at the time of his arrest he was in talks to star in the Watergate miniseries White House Plumbers with Woody Harrelson, as well as film a second season of Raising Kanan – a spin-off of Power.

Stokes has vowed to 'continue and pick up' where he left off if he is released, as well work on a project with Tyler Perry.

At a court hearing in December, Stokes begged a court to allow him to move wings inside the New York City lock-up after being beaten up while in protective custody.

He remains under protection but claims that he is struggling to 'be someplace safe', adding: 'There is really nothing protective about custody when you wake up among 50 men every day, and at times there are no officers on the floor.'

'You become vulnerable to things, I've seen stabbings, cuttings, officers being assaulted, people getting jumped, and a whole bunch of other violent things. That's not protective custody.

'I've been moved several times, and protective custody is for people that don't want to join a gang, maybe for those who are leaders not followers – or who have been kicked out of a gang.

'I need to be in a safe environment, I've already been assaulted in protective custody. I'm an actor and I get paid for my likeness. Now I've come to jail and I've got a chipped tooth'.

Stokes said that he needs to be separated from other inmates to 'prove his innocence' and 'get on with his life'.

He added that he's been trying to study the law but claims his access from the law library has been blocked.

Stokes said that he has helped 'several people get out of jail', by making them aware of 'how the law works', despite access being limited by the jail.

 Police said Jones was shot multiple times in the face and head while he sat in a white rented Jeep (pictured) near the corner of Linden Blvd. and 200th St. in St. Albans

The scene of the 2021 shooting slaying in Forest Hills, Queens, which comes amid a surge in gun crime in NYC

Brown-Douglas replaced the actor's original lawyer in June, with a court ordering Stokes to be put into protective custody in October following his move from the West Facility two months prior.

Additionally, his lawyer doubled down on Stokes claims that he was being prevented from viewing all of the footage of the alleged incident while incarcerated, due to limitations accessing the library.

Justice Holder was asked to allow Stokes to view the footage in court, or sign a motion forcing Rikers to allow him more time, but refused, telling Brown-Douglas: 'And watch hours and hours of video, some of which just shows the street before it shows him allegedly going up to a car and blowing someone's brains out?

'It just shows an empty street, just a car in the street. So, we're going to sit here for hours and hours and watch this while I have other things to do just so he can see the entire video?

'I'm not going to do that. I don't control Rikers Island. If they have decided that one hour a day is appropriate enough for every defendant to see their video, then that's it.'

Prosecutors say surveillance footage shows Stokes walk past the driver's side window of the Jeep before doubling back, gunning down his victim and fleeing the scene.

The gunman was captured on separate footage getting into a rented Audi, which police say they tracked to a parking spot near Stokes's home.

Authorities have yet to confirm what they believe led to the slaying, with Queen's DA Melinda Katz saying at the time of his arrest: 'The defendant is accused of unloading nearly 11 shots during this brazen afternoon shooting.