Magistrate Court
Translation: Marganit W.
Jerusalem Magistrate Court
Judge: Dorit Epstein
Prosecutor: Bahgat Muhammad Mahmoud Sleiman
Rep. of the plaintiff: Atty. Eitay Mack
Rep. of the respondent: Atty. Arye Lurie
Rep. of the State: Atty. Moshe Vilinger
Defining a “Price Tag” incident as property violation – it’s no different than a car accident (Atty. Lurie)
Background:
On 19.11.13 three settlers from Gilad Farm [outpost] entered the yard of Sleiman family in Kfar Far’ata. While the family was asleep, the settlers set fire to a truck and a car belonging to the family. Needless to say, the vehicles could have easily blown up and burned the house and its occupants.
The settlers were later arrested and charged with a serious crime.
Atty. Mack is now suing them AND THE STATE in a civil suit. He claims that security forces knew the settlers as serial offenders and as dangerous rightwing activists, who in the last few years had been involved in many illegal and violent incidents against Palestinians and their property.
Atty. Mack claims that the state is culpable for not preventing the crime.
The criminal legal proceedings ended with a plea bargain: two of he settlers pleaded guilty and expressed regret in return for a lenient sentence. However, one of the settlers who pleaded guilty and expressed regret now, in the civil suit, reneges and denies that he took part in the incident. The two others ignore the civil suit altogether.
Today, the attorney representing the state tried to minimize his clients’ responsibility, saying what I cited above.
A debate ensued regarding the state’s responsibility for not preventing a crime. The judge evinced great interest in the subject, especially since there are no precedents.
Atty. Mack said he had not yet received all the documents, and it was decided that the two sides would gather all the documents and submit them to the judge within 21 days.
Perhaps it is time to stop calling those pogroms by the name THEY gave them – ‘Price Tag’ - and start calling them HATE CRIMES.