Lenient plea deal for man responsible for the death of Paul Kessler during an anti-Israel demonstration
You may recall the death of Paul Kessler two years ago, in which the 69-year-old Jewish man was struck with a megaphone by a pro-Palestinian demonstrator, fell, hit his head, and died. Now the perpetrator has been offered a plea deal rather than going to trial. The trial had been scheduled for next week, so the plea deal is very timely. But he has agreed to plead guilty to involuntary manslaughter in exchange for a one-year sentence followed by probation.
The perp’s name is Loay Alnaji, described here as “a Moorpark resident” (Moorpark is an LA suburb in Ventura County). Alnaji is a naturalized citizen originally from Jordan, something the yahoo article neglects to mention, but which is noted in this Legal Insurrection piece. He also is (or perhaps was) a professor of computer science at a community college in Moorpark.
The case wasn’t one of murder, but nevertheless the low penalty is disturbing, plus now we will never get a hearing on the facts of the case. Alnaji’s counsel states the swiping with the megaphone was accidental, but whether or not that is true, or whether this was more sinister, will never be heard in a court of law. What’s more strange – to me, at least – is that the judge made this deal over the prosecution’s objections:
Senior Deputy District Attorney David Russell said both the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office and Kessler’s family opposed the judge’s offer and instead requested the maximum possible sentence of four years in state prison.
“This is over the people’s objection,” Russell told [Judge] Malan.
It’s my impression that this is highly unusual. Ordinarily it’s the prosecution offering the deal, and it’s the judge rubber-stamping it. In fact, in a search just now I can’t find a similar case, although perhaps they exist.
My guess is that the judge wanted this case to go away. The defense attorney has claimed that the judge said it was a situation in which “two old guys had a dispute and an accident happened.” Wow. Wouldn’t that be something to determine after the evidence has come out in a trial?
I thought a plea deal was made with the prosecution and then presented to the judge. I never heard of a judge talking independently to an accused person without the prosecution’s involvement. In particular, as you point out, Neo, this means the judge heard the defense’s version of what happened, but not the prosecution’s evidence.
As I recall, Alnaji crossed two four-lane roads, approached Kessler, hit him in the head with a bull horn, whereupon Kessler fell and cracked his skull. This calls for more than a slap on the wrist, in my opinion.