A demonstrator holds a sign at a makeshift memorial at the site of the altercation between 69-year-old Paul Kessler and a pro-Palestinian protestor on November 7, 2023 in Thousand Oaks, California. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images) A man has been arrested for the killing of 69-year-old Paul Kessler on November 5.
The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office announced on Thursday morning that the suspect, 50-year-old Moorpark resident Loay Alnaji, was arrested on charges of involuntary manslaughter. His bail is set at $1 million.
Kessler died on Nov. 6 following an altercation a day earlier with a pro-Palestinian protester. The sheriff’s office had said that Kessler suffered nonlethal injuries to his face and lethal injuries to the back of his head that were consistent with a fall; the medical examiner’s office had concluded that Kessler’s death was a homicide.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles said in a statement, “We are grateful for the swift work of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department in response to the tragic death of Mr. Paul Kessler. This arrest shows that violence towards our Jewish community will not be tolerated. We will continue to monitor the case to help ensure justice is served. Our heartfelt condolences continue to be with the family of Paul Kessler and may his memory forever be a blessing.”
American Jewish Committee Los Angeles Regional Director Richard S. Hirschhaut said in a statement to the Journal, “By every measure, the death of Paul Kessler was an avoidable tragedy. However unintentional his death may have been, the escalation of a verbal argument into an act of physical violence must carry consequences. Mr. Alnaji’s assault of Mr. Kessler was the predicate offense that led to this outcome and cannot be met with impunity. We extend our deepest condolences to the family of Mr. Kessler.”
UPDATE:
Legal Analysis: Pro-Palestinian Protester Charged with Involuntary Manslaughter in Death of Jewish Man, Paul Kessler
Ventura County Sheriffs have made an arrest in the homicide of Jewish man who was allegedly struck by a pro-Palestinian protester at a demonstration on November 5, which resulted in his death the following day.
The Sheriff’s Major Crimes Bureau arrested 50-year-old Loay Abdelfattah Alnaji in the city of Moorpark on Thursday morning, He will be booked at the Ventura County Pre-Trial Detention Facility and charged with involuntary manslaughter. His bail will be set at $1,000,000. California law defines Involuntary Manslaughter as “in the commission of an unlawful act, not amounting to a felony; or in the commission of a lawful act which might produce death, in an unlawful manner, or without due caution and circumspection. This subdivision shall not apply to acts committed in the driving of a vehicle.”
The charge carries a maximum penalty of 4 years in state prison. Lou Shapiro, a criminal defense attorney in Los Angeles for nearly two decades, told the Journal that the maximum penalty is “usually for someone who has a previous record.” No prior criminal record could be located for Alnaji, though Shapiro said it’s unlikely there is anything of note.
Most likely, Shapiro said, Alnaji doesn’t have a record, because colleges and educational institutions are very strict in terms of hiring. You have to submit to what’s called a Live Scan, electronic fingerprinting in order to work there. If he has some sort of record, it would be very old and it probably would not be anything violence-related.
Shapiro also said that the bail amount of $1 million is unusually high, saying that for an involuntary manslaughter case, it would usually be set in the $100,000 to $500,000 range. Shapiro speculated that the high bail amount could be because the district attorney’s office could be considering a “hate crime enhancement.”
“Involuntary manslaughter means you’re negligent, it means you didn’t intend to hurt the person,” Shapiro said. “But a hate crime enhancement requires an intent that you did this act because the person is Jewish, for example. That makes it a hate crime. I suppose you could make the argument that someone was negligent because the person was Jewish. The victim was Jewish. I don’t see why that can’t work.” A hate crime enhancement could add between 2-4 years in state prison.
Shapiro said that for a hate crime to be filed, the district attorney, when filing the criminal complaint and alleging what the charge is, would also write that in in addition to this charge, “that they are alleging an enhancement that the crime was done because the victim was Jewish. It was done out of antisemitic motivation.”
Still, there was no mention of any “hate crime” in today’s statement from Ventura County District Attorney, Erik Nasarenko: “Throughout their investigation, prosecutors have been in daily consultation with the Sheriff’s Office and are finalizing review of the evidence. A charging decision is expected by later today and a status update will be issued at that time.”
UPDATE:
Nasarenko’s office updated the charges just before 4:30 p.m. today with the following statement: “two felony charges will be filed against Loay Abdelfattah Alnaji (DOB 05/06/73), of Moorpark, in connection with the death of Paul Kessler. Alnaji has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and battery causing serious bodily injury. Both charges have special allegations that Alnaji personally inflicted great bodily injury.”
Alnaji is computer science professor at Moorpark College. His name no longer appears on the school’s website, but an archive of the page from June 7 of this year listed Alnaji as “full-time faculty” who taught three courses: Computer Architecture & Organization, Intro Computer Science, Prog. Concepts and Methods II. A hyperlink on the snapshot of Alnaji’s faculty page leads to a website in Arabic titled, “Surah Meaning.”
Paul Kessler, 69, died after the alleged altercation with Alnaji at a rally at the corner of North Westlake Boulevard and East Thousand Oaks Boulevard in Thousand Oaks. Kessler was among the pro-Israel counterprotesters and had been holding an Israeli flag.
Ventura County Sheriff’s Office (VCSO) said in a press conference on November 7 that Kessler had suffered non-lethal injuries to his face and a lethal injury to the back of his head that are consistent with a fall and that the medical examiner concluded that Kessler’s death was a homicide.
Although there is footage from before and after the alleged striking and Kessler’s subsequent fall, no video has been released of that particular moment. Witnesses have alleged that Alnaji hit Kessler with a megaphone. Jonathan Oswaks, who witnessed the altercation, recounted the incident to reporters on November 7. The incident took place on a public sidewalk near a Shell Gas station, located at 3995 East Thousand Oaks Boulevard, in Thousand Oaks.
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“I would expect it’s going to be a self-defense case,” Shapiro said. “In order to justify a self-defense case, you have to prove that you were about to suffer imminent bodily danger from the person [Kessler]. And the fact that if the suspect here [Alnaji] was not injured or no video to corroborate it or eyewitnesses, it’s going to be an uphill battle.”
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