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PaperclipPerfector  1yr ago (text post)   30446 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of November 13, 2023

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Update on the Paul Kessler death from last week (link to Gattsurus post from last week's thread):

Police have arrested the Palestinian supporting computer science professor that allegedly swung a megaphone at Kessler; a pro-Israel counter protestor, resulting in the latter falling down and hitting his head leading to death.

"Loay Alnaji, 50, was taken into custody Thursday morning and is charged with involuntary manslaughter and battery causing serious bodily injury, officials said."

...

"Alnaji, of Moorpark, was being held Thursday night on $1 million bail, according to online records."

...

"Both charges he faces are felonies, the Ventura County District Attorney's Office said. It said both counts have special allegations that Alnaji personally inflicted great bodily injury,which is a type of enhancement.

...

"California penal code defines involuntary manslaughter as when someone is killed by an unlawful act less severe than a felony or by a lawful act that might produce death in an unlawful manner or without due caution."

I know there was a fair bit of speculation around whether he would or would not be charged, but it seems like the cops think they might have enough evidence to make this stick (even though they are still asking people to come forward if they were a witness or have video). Either that or they've decided they'd better do everything they can to dodge the political consequences of not prosecuting with so much signal boosting from jewish advocacy groups.

@gattsuru linked an earlier post by @FCfromSSC that opines that Blue Tribers are less likely to face consequences of these sorts of scuffles. If that theory is correct than perhaps Jewish Zionists still rate higher than Palestinians on the progressive stack and in situations like this the lower ranking Blue Triber will face punishment more like the Red Tribe.

Also, if you're going to go to a protest and be a maskless speaker it seems like you should do whatever you can to avoid scuffling. Without a mask Alnaji didn't have the option of leaving the scene with his anonymity intact.

A California Superior Court judge ruled Wednesday that there is enough evidence for Moorpark College professor/pro-Hamas agitator Loay Alnaji to go to trial on charges of manslaughter in the death of Paul Kessler, a Jewish man who was involved in a counterprotest on November 5, 2023. Alnaji was involved in a confrontation with Kessler on that Sunday afternoon when he allegedly hit Kessler in the face with a bullhorn, causing Kessler to fall and fracture his skull. Kessler died approximately seven hours after the altercation...

Dr. Othon Mena, Assistant Chief Medical Examiner for Ventura County, conducted Kessler's autopsy and testified as to his findings. Mena found four exterior injuries to the left side of Kessler's face, along with a tear inside Kessler's mouth and damage to Kessler's tongue where he'd clenched his teeth, likely after being hit with the bullhorn. After examining the bullhorn and the grooved pattern of the rubber lip on the bottom of it, Mena concluded that the scrapes/lacerations to Kessler's left chin, left upper lip, and the outer corner of his left eye were caused by the bullhorn striking Kessler, and that the black eye noticeable on autopsy was either caused by the bullhorn strike or Kessler's subsequent fall.

Mena also testified that a 2-inch curvilinear tear on the back of Kessler's head and a skull fracture were caused by the assault or fall.

A crime lab technician testified that Kessler's DNA was found on three portions of the bullhorn: near the bottom, where a red/brown bloodstain was found, and in two sections of the bottom lip of the bullhorn.

Seems pretty conclusive about what killed him. Maybe the defense can try some angle about how the scuffle started.

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