NEWARK, NJ — A New Jersey man serving more than 26 years in federal prison for a string of armed bank robberies has been denied in his latest attempt to reduce his sentence, after a federal judge rejected his motion to undo a prior ruling based on claims of legal error and new evidence.

Joseph McAdams, who pleaded guilty in 2009 to ten counts of bank robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm, filed a motion under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b)(4) and (d)(1) asking the court to vacate the judgment against him. U.S. District Judge Edward S. Kiel denied the motion on procedural and substantive grounds and declined to issue a certificate of appealability.

McAdams had argued that his classification as a “career offender” — which added significant time to his sentence — was based o

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