Anti-Israel Protester Sentenced to One Year in Jail for Manslaughter at 2023 Demonstration

An anti-Israel protester who admitted guilt to a manslaughter charge in the death of a pro-Israel demonstrator in California was sentenced this week to one year in county jail.

Loay Abdel Fattah Alnaji, 53, was involved in a 2023 confrontation with 69-year-old Paul Kessler, during which authorities said Alnaji struck Kessler in the head with a megaphone. Kessler fell backward, hit his head again and later died at a hospital from his injuries.

The clash occurred amid heightened tensions tied to the Israel-Hamas war and growing concerns over antisemitism in the U.S. and beyond. Alnaji originally faced the possibility of up to four years in prison as he contested the charges, but his anticipated punishment was reduced after he entered a guilty plea in May.

Prosecutors objected to the one-year jail term, arguing that Alnaji should have been sent to state prison and ordered to serve a longer period behind bars.

“Mr. Kessler lost his life in a violent attack that took him from his family and his wife of 43 years,” Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said in a statement. “Given the circumstances of this case and the death that resulted, we believe a state prison commitment was the appropriate and just sentence.”

In a victim impact statement, Kessler’s widow wrote, in part, “There are no words to describe the pain of losing a husband in such a sudden and violent way.”

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“The grief is relentless. The silence in our house, the absence of his voice, his companionship, his love and the future we had planned together are losses I carry with me every day,” she continued, according to the district attorney’s office.

Jonathan Oswaks, a friend of Kessler’s who was at the rally with him when the incident took place, spoke to the Jewish Journal when news of Alnaji’s expected sentence was released, calling it “deeply frustrating.”

“I’m not a lawyer, but the way this was handled raises serious questions for me. It sends a troubling message about accountability,” he told the outlet.

Oswaks recounted moments from the event in his interview with the outlet, noting how the pro-Palestinian protesters vastly outnumbered them that day. He said after the pair had split up, people began approaching him and stood inches from his face yelling into his ear and using a megaphone.

“When I tell you I had never experienced that level of hate in my life, I hadn’t,” he said. “I told them to get out of my space. They backed off briefly, then started again. I made it clear they needed to stay away, and eventually they did.”