Driver Who Ran Over Yosef Aisenthal Z’l Released To House Arrest, Police Appeal Decision

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — The Jerusalem District Court ordered three days of house arrest for the bus driver who on Tuesday ran over and killed 14-year-old Yosef Aisenthal, of blessed memory, during a charedi protest at the Yirmiyahu–Shamgar intersection in Jerusalem. The bus driver is suspected of causing negligent homicide, although initially police had wanted to charge him with aggravated murder. Meanwhile, police announced they will request a stay of execution in order to file an appeal to the Supreme Court.

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During the hearing at the Jerusalem District Court on the driver’s appeal, Judge Tamar Bar-Asher said after watching the security camera footage from the scene that “the decisive question will be what the driver saw from inside the bus.”

The following exchange took place between Judge Bar-Asher and the police representative:Judge Bar-Asher asked why it was necessary to keep the driver in custody:

“None of the 39 investigative actions you planned are subject to obstruction,” she said, adding: “Point to one action you believe could be obstructed.”

The police representative replied that there was no such action.

Judge Bar-Asher responded: “So why do we need him in custody?”

The police representative stated: “There is suspicion of committing offenses among the most serious in the statute book.”

Judge Bar-Asher replied: “You are not claiming in any way that this was done intentionally or maliciously. Even his traffic violations are merely technical. He is a driver who is on the road all day, and most of his violations are technical. These are not violations considered serious or indicative of dangerousness.”

At the conclusion of the hearing, Judge Bar-Asher ruled that there was no justification to extend the driver’s detention, writing in her decision:“The incident for which the appellant was arrested ended in a tragic and horrific manner with the loss of the life of a young boy, approximately 15 years old.”

“On Tuesday evening, disturbances occurred in the area of Yirmiyahu Street in Jerusalem involving members of the Haredi public. During these disturbances, the bus driven by the appellant arrived and was forced to stop after many participants surrounded the bus, opened the doors from the outside, entered it, and attacked the appellant. Feeling threatened, the appellant called the police to request assistance, but until the end of the incident no police arrived at the scene.”

“With the required caution, I note that from the footage presented to me it was not possible to observe any police officers in the area. At a certain point, youths can be seen clinging to the outside of the bus, in addition to those blocking its continued movement. Subsequently, the road cleared and the appellant began driving away at a relatively fast speed, which according to his version was due to the earlier attack and his fear of further violence.”

“Tragically, it later became clear that two youths were clinging to the bus. One was holding onto the left side and fell off as the bus began moving, apparently sustaining minor injuries. The deceased, however, was clinging to the front of the bus, and after traveling dozens of meters, tragically lost his life.”

Judge Bar-Asher added:

“From the evidence presented, it appears that police possess material that could prima facie establish reasonable suspicion for an offense on the boundary between causing death by negligence and reckless manslaughter. However, as I noted, the central question that will likely determine the case is whether the appellant could have seen the deceased clinging to the front of the bus or whether such visibility was impossible.”

“As is known, one of the primary issues in examining the offense of causing death by negligence is whether the occurrence of harm, in this case, the tragic death of the boy, was foreseeable. In any event, it is difficult to say that this is an offense indicating a level of dangerousness that justifies continued detention.”

“It is important to emphasize that from all the evidence it appears that the bus began moving only after the road had cleared and there were no people in front of it.”

As previously reported, during the protest in Jerusalem on Tuesday against the draft law, 14-year-old Yosef Aisenthal was killed after being run over by a bus, and three others were injured. United Hatzalah and MDA reported multiple casualties from a vehicular incident at the Yirmiyahu–Shamgar intersection. The injured were treated at the scene and evacuated for medical care, some in serious condition. MDA’s director stated that the deceased was apparently a protester who became trapped beneath the bus’s wheels. The bus driver was arrested.

Fakhri Khatib, a resident of East Jerusalem, is the bus driver suspected of causing death by negligence. He is accused of driving at excessive speed not suited to road conditions, reckless driving, and manslaughter.

Yaakov Zimberg, who survived the incident, told Radio Kol Barama: “They spat at and cursed the bus driver. He called the police and was speaking to them out loud. After someone threw a stone at the bus, he drove at a speed of at least 70 km/h while there were about 50 youths in front of the bus. There were at least four guys he ran over. I managed to escape at the last second.”