Artist draws Star of David around Paul Kessler’s blood stain David Swanson/AFP July 11, 2023
A Jewish man died of head trauma after a disagreement during a proPalestinian demonstration in California, local police said. The case is being investigated as a murder.
The victim was identified as 69yearold Paul Kessler, who died early Monday morning at a hospital where he had been taken after a confrontation at a protest in Thousand Oaks, said Ventura County Sheriff Jim Fryhoff Investigations.
Authorities have not ruled out the possibility of a hate crime, but Fryhoff said it was unclear whether or not the victim was attacked before the fall.
A 50yearold suspect who was there “in defense of Palestine” and admitted that he was “involved in the confrontation with Kessler” was briefly detained for questioning at a traffic light on Monday.
• Click here and receive news from R7 on your WhatsApp
• Share this news via WhatsApp
• Share this news on Telegram
• Subscribe to the R7 em Ponto newsletter
Several videos of this confrontation in Southern California went viral on social media.
Fryhoff provided details of the incident but said despite the footage, it was “not entirely clear” what happened.
On Sunday afternoon (12), his office received several calls with reports of a possible attack at an intersection where a demonstration in support of the Palestinian cause was planned.
The police found around a hundred people at the crime scene, some of whom were proIsrael and others proPalestinian. Kessler was “aware and responsive.”
“The sergeant noticed he was bleeding from his head and mouth,” Fryhoff said, adding that Kessler remained conscious during transport to the hospital.
“A CT scan showed intracranial injuries, including inflammation in the brain and bleeding around the brain,” said Ventura County Coroner Chris Young.
Young explained that Kessler’s condition worsened and he died in the early hours of the next day.
The coroner stressed that the autopsy revealed nonfatal injuries to the left side of the face that “could have been the result of a blow,” but clarified that this was a matter for investigators.
“There was clearly an interaction between the two. But the extent of this interaction is still unclear,” said Fryhoff.