Two and a half years after the killing of Paul Kessler in Thousand Oaks on November 5, 2023, Ventura County Superior Court Judge Derek Malan offered Loay Alnaji a plea deal that could result in a maximum sentence of one year in jail and three years of probation.
Alnaji, 54, of Moorpark, accepted the deal and pleaded guilty, avoiding a jury trial that had been scheduled for May 12.
The incident in which Kessler died took place during a pro-Palestinian protest at the corner of Thousand Oaks and Westlake Boulevard. Kessler, 69, a Jewish resident of Thousand Oaks, was struck with a megaphone, fell and died the following day. Authorities said Alnaji approached the area where Kessler was standing with pro-Israel demonstrators, and the two exchanged words before the confrontation.
Alnaji had initially pleaded not guilty. His defense attorney, Ron Bamieh, argued that his client did not intend to strike Kessler and accidentally hit him with the megaphone after Kessler placed a cellphone close to his face. Bamieh also argued that Kessler’s death was linked to a preexisting brain tumor that exacerbated the injuries from the fall.
However, Assistant Chief Medical Examiner Othon Mena testified during a May 2024 preliminary hearing that Kessler died from blunt force injuries.
Jonathan Oswaks, a friend of Kessler who attended the rally with him, said he is shocked by the outcome.
In an interview with the Journal, Oswaks questioned how the case was handled.
“I’m angry. I don’t know what to call it, but it’s not justice and the resolution is deeply frustrating,” Oswaks said. “I’m not a lawyer, but the way this was handled raises serious questions for me. It sends a troubling message about accountability.”
Oswaks, 70, met Kessler about three weeks before his death. In a November 2024 interview he gave the Journal at a memorial for Kessler at the corner of Thousand Oaks and Westlake boulevards, he said he had been trying to raise awareness and called on others to attend a pro-Israel rally.
“I was immediately booted off Nextdoor,” Oswaks said. “The only person who responded to my call on social media was Paul Kessler.”
Recalling the day of the incident, Oswaks said the two initially stood together before deciding to separate.
“At around 3 p.m., when the rally began, Paul and I were standing here at the corner, but there were so many pro-Palestinian protesters, so I told him we should split up because we only had two flags,” he said. “I told him, ‘You stay here, and I’ll go to the other corner, about 80 feet away.’”
Oswaks said that shortly after, two men approached him and began shouting antisemitic slurs.
“When I tell you I had never experienced that level of hate in my life, I hadn’t,” he said.
He described the men standing inches from his face, yelling into his ear and using a megaphone.
“I told them to get out of my space,” he said. “They backed off briefly, then started again. I made it clear they needed to stay away, and eventually they did.”
Despite the experience, Oswaks said he is not afraid to attend rallies in the future, but believes safety is a growing concern.
“You’re basically unprotected. You have to look out for yourself, and that’s really unfortunate,” he said. “It feels like things are deteriorating — like we’re becoming some kind of third-world sh—hole.”
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 sought the maximum possible sentence of four years in state prison.
Alnaji, a professor at a community college, will be sentenced on June 25.
