The Criminal Department of the State Attorney's Office filed an appeal with the Supreme Court today (Sunday) against the sentence of Ramzi Geba, an ultrasound technician at the Meuhedet Health Fund, who was convicted of committing serious acts on his patients during a routine examination at the Ultrasound Institute in Beitar Illit.
The appeal states that the prosecution believes that the sentence does not reflect the seriousness of the offenses he committed, certainly given the fact that they were committed within the scope of his duties and while exploiting the unique trust that exists between a therapist and a patient. According to the prosecution, "the therapists are burdened with increased responsibility, by virtue of their duties, and their abuse of their status and position should be reflected in punishment.".
According to what is described in the District Court's ruling, during ultrasound examinations, the defendant committed the offenses on two Haredi patients.
Want more news, videos and stories? Join the Haredim 10 WhatsApp channel >>
In the District Court, the prosecution requested that the defendant be sentenced to 10 years in prison, but the court sentenced him to only 6 years in prison, along with probation and compensation for the complainants.
In the State Attorney's appeal, it was argued, through the director of the criminal department, Attorney Rachel Matar, and Attorney Vered Halava, that "the sentence imposed on him is extremely lenient and does not adequately reflect the excessive severity associated with his actions due to his role and the unique relationship between therapist and patient.".
The prosecution will argue that "the caretakers are burdened with increased responsibility, by virtue of their position. Their abuse of their status and position should be reflected in punishment.".
According to the prosecution's approach, "the sentence imposed on the defendant, for two acts, expresses a lenient approach that the state believes has no place" when it comes to serious offenses in general, and the offense of a particularly serious act in particular. "Certainly, when it comes to a case where there is an abuse of trust given to a medical staff member, during an examination, and it is likely to affect the complainants' ability to place future trust in medical practitioners when they need it.
""Therefore, the prosecution asks the court to accept the appeal and significantly increase the defendant's sentence.".
As reported in Haredim 10, the Jerusalem District Court sentenced more than a month ago to 6 years in prison the ultrasound technician of the Meuhedet Health Fund, who committed serious acts on Haredi patients at the Betar Illit Institute.
He was also sentenced to 6 months in prison on probation and 25,000 shekels in compensation to each of the complainants.
Geba, a 27-year-old resident of East Jerusalem, who was arrested two years ago, was convicted of two charges, each of which included the offense of rape and the offense of serious acts.
According to the indictment, filed by the Jerusalem District Attorney's Office, as part of his work at the Meuhedet Health Fund in Beitar Illit as an ultrasound examiner on behalf of the Ma'ar company, Geba committed the offenses on two patients.
The Jerusalem District Attorney's Office argued that Geba took advantage of the situation that had arisen, in which he was alone with the patients in the room, to satisfy his needs. Attorney Miriam Ben Gal from the attorney's office noted that Geba acted in a similar pattern in both cases, and that the acts were planned in advance, repeated, and exploited the complainants' trust.
