The Police Investigations Department today (Thursday) filed an appeal with the Jerusalem District Court against the verdict given by the city's Magistrate's Court, in which Police Chief Shimon Marciano, commander of the 'Lev HaBira' police station in Jerusalem, was acquitted of two offenses of assaulting Haredi youths - which were attributed to him in the indictment.
Suffering from a medical problem? Maybe you deserve to receive 6,400 NIS each month
According to the indictment, in October 2020, the police officer commanded a police force that secured a large demonstration of demonstrators from the ultra-Orthodox sector that was held in Haredi neighborhoods in Jerusalem, and also acted to prevent disturbances.
During the demonstration, the officer began running towards a group of protesters who were standing near him on Shivtei Yisrael Street, and who were suspected of throwing stones at the police force.
A 13-year-old boy who was standing with the other protesters at the scene began to run away from the police officer, as did most of the protesters. The officer grabbed the boy, grabbed him, and pushed him hard against a stone wall at the scene. As a result, the boy was slammed into the wall and fell to the ground.
At this point, while the officer was leaning over the boy, two more police officers joined him. Then, while the boy was sitting on the ground and kept shouting "I didn't do anything" - without resisting or taking any other action - the officer slapped him in the face, for no reason.
Shortly thereafter, as the activity continued, the officer noticed another 15-year-old boy holding a mobile phone and filmed the 13-year-old boy being led away by another police officer.
The officer grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, in the back of his neck, pushed him hard and threw him to the ground, towards bushes in the area. As a result, he suffered abrasions on his right knee.
As part of the appeal, filed through attorneys Ronen Yitzhak and Adi Wollnerman, it was claimed that the use of force against the two boys was unlawful.
According to the appeal notice, once the 13-year-old boy fell to the ground and was neutralized, and beside him, in addition to the police officer, were two other police officers, the officer's authority to use force against him ended.
In the case of the 15-year-old boy, it was claimed that he did not interfere with the police's work but stood and took pictures and that under these circumstances there was no justification for pushing him. The notice of appeal states that "the appellant will argue that the lower court erred - and this at several points, mainly legal - and thus deviated markedly from the accepted and appropriate legal policy.
""As a result, the result reached by the trial court - when it ordered the acquittal of the respondent of the two offenses attributed to him, despite the fact that at least with regard to A. it determined that the elements of the offense of assault were met - sends, in the circumstances of the case, an incorrect message, and in any case confusing, ambiguous and unbalanced, which requires intervention in it.
""The appellant is requesting in this appeal not only to correct the error of the lower court, but also to place the normative standard in its proper place. According to the appellant, the verdict does not correctly label the seriousness of the respondent's actions, and it even has the effect of transmitting a forgiving and, God forbid, dangerous message, on a sensitive issue of the highest social and legal significance, not only to the private citizen in question but - and it should be said primarily - to the entire public.""
Join the Haredim 10 Facebook page >>
Join the X page of Haredim 10 >>
Want more news, videos and stories? Join the Haredim 10 WhatsApp channel >>
