Daijiworld Media Network – Los Angeles
Los Angeles, Jul 2: A California court has sentenced a pro-Palestinian protester to one year in county jail after he pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in the 2023 death of a 69-year-old Jewish man during a demonstration over the Israel-Hamas war.
The incident occurred on November 5, 2023, in Thousand Oaks near Los Angeles, when Paul Kessler (69) suffered a fatal head injury during a confrontation with Loay Alnaji (53).
According to authorities, Alnaji was participating in a pro-Palestinian demonstration, while Kessler was attending a pro-Israel rally nearby.
The Ventura County District Attorney's Office said Alnaji escalated a verbal argument into a physical confrontation and struck Kessler in the head with a megaphone. Kessler fell, hit his head on the ground and died the following day.
Officials said Alnaji remained at the scene after the incident and called emergency services.
Alnaji pleaded guilty on May 5 to involuntary manslaughter, battery causing serious bodily injury, and a special allegation of causing great bodily injury.
Despite prosecutors seeking a state prison sentence, Ventura County Superior Court sentenced Alnaji on Tuesday to one year in county jail followed by two years of probation.
Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko expressed disappointment with the sentence, saying Kessler had lost his life in a violent attack and that a prison term would have been more appropriate.
In a victim impact statement, Kessler's widow described the profound grief caused by her husband's sudden death, saying the loss of his companionship and the future they had planned together was something she continued to endure every day.
Alnaji's attorney, Ron Bamieh, argued that the incident was accidental, saying his client had intended only to swat Kessler's mobile phone away from his face and unintentionally struck him with the megaphone.
While delivering the sentence, Judge Derek Malan said the legal standards supported probation in the case and noted that the charges did not allege an intentional killing or classify the incident as a hate crime.
The confrontation occurred amid widespread demonstrations across the United States following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023.