Ofer - Plea Bargain, Stone Throwing

Observers:

Hava Halevi, Mili Mass (reporting)

Mar-2-2015

Morning

Translation: Marganit W.

We arrived at 9:30 and found many Palestinians trying to get into the courthouse compound.

Many of them must have come for the traffic trials that take place on Mondays.

The day began slowly. We waited until ten for hearings to start.

We finally went to Justice Major Meir Vigiser’s court.

There were 36 cases in the docket: 4 property violations, 5 arms possession, 2 staying illegally in Israel, 9 membership and activity in a proscribed organization, 2 throwing objects, 1 criminal, 1 attack on a soldier, 1 manufacturing a bomb and two unspecified.

In our experience, most cases end up being postponed, but we have never seen so many postponements in one morning. Most were arranged in haste between the judge and the defense attorneys; the prosecutor – Lieut. Gali Katalan – never said a word.

Di’yaa Abed Almajid Muhammad Abu Alaan, ID 937288934 - Case 1172/15

Charge: Leaving the area without a permit

Defense: Ahmad Abu Saffiya (replacing Ilya Theordory who was busy elsewhere)

The defendant looked dejected and desperate. As part of the plea bargain the attorney offered him a 4.5-months in jail, but he turned it down. He stood up and told the judge that he had already been in detention for 2 months. He has a 6-month old daughter and he claimed he was innocent. It turns out that he has a prior conviction for the same offense with a suspended sentence (it was not clear if the suspension is still in effect.) The judge offered him a choice between accepting the plea bargain or admitting his guilt (which may result in the judge giving him a stiffer punishment).

The judge and the prosecutor conferred: he explained to her that in this court he could not give a harder penalty than is accepted in Israel: at most 5 months for leaving the area without a permit).

Atty. Saffiya suggested postponing the hearing by a week in order to come to an agreement with the prosecution. Atty. Theodory, who joined toward the end, seconded the motion. The judge, too, thought it was a good solution.

The next hearing was set for 9.3.15.

Di’yaa left the court as hopeless as he had come in.

Aadel Abed Allatif Abed Alkader Bezar, ID 908297674 - Case 1730/15

Charge: criminal

Defense: Ahmad Abu Saffiya

The hearing was postponed to 4.5.15.

Muhammad Nasser Muhammad Dar Hamida, ID 851735381 - Case 5787/15

Charge: attacking a soldier and preventing him from carrying out his duties

Defense: Atty. Walid

There is an agreement.

The hearing was postponed to 16.3.15.

Ibrahim Marwan Ibrahim Natshe, ID 853028918 - Case 2617/14

Charge: Drugs

Defense: Atty. Munzer Abu Ahmad

There was a short – and angry – exchange between the attorney and the GSS guards, after one of the guards grabbed the attorney’s phone, claiming that the latter was not supposed to use it (even though this is material protected by attorney-client confidentiality).

Since there was (unspecified) a mistake in the agreement, the hearing was postponed to 16.3.15.

Muhammad Aamer Ibrahim Hamidan, ID 401906052 - Case 3144/14

The defendant comes from the village of Bidu

Charge: property violation

Defense: Atty. Munzer Abu Ahmed

A plea bargain is in the making.

The hearing was postponed to 16.3.15.

Hamza Ahmad Hassan Ataa, ID 411589963 - Case 6598/14

Charge: throwing objects at military jeeps

Defense: Atty. Mahmoud Hassan

During February and March the defendant threw rocks at 3 military jeeps at Dir Abu Mashul. There was no damage. The defendant is an accounting student at the university, He has been detained for 6 months and his studies have been disrupted. Thus, he is doubly penalized by the court.

The judge accepted the plea bargain and ordered 7-months jail time, 12-months suspended sentence for 5 years and a 2500 shekel fine.

Hamza’s parents were in court. The father told Hava that 2 days earlier Hamza’s brother had been arrested.

Maed Yussuf Hassan Kafiya, ID 859835290 - Case 1326/15

Muhammad Yussuf Hassan Kafiya, ID 859835308 - Case 1327/15

Charge: membership and activity in a proscribed organization

Defense: Ilya Theodory

Muhammad was brought in after Maed was already in the defendants’ seat. The guards made sure they were not sitting next to each other. The brothers embraced warmly, then sat with two other detainees info-icon between them.

The hearing was postponed to 13.4.15.

Balal Haled Saed Kalib, ID 941190100 - Case 4327/14

Charge: possession of combat materiel

Defense: Atty. Alissa Shaaban

The defendant has been in jail for more than a year. The judge wants to postpone the hearing to 13.4.15, but the attorney prefers the beginning of May. The hearing was set for 4.5.15.

Ismail Abdullah Issa Arug – ID 920278652 Case No. 4374/14

Charge: possession of combat materiel

Defense: Atty. Alise Shabaan

The hearing was postponed to 4.5.15 after the judge and attorney had agreed which witnesses to summon.

Abed Allah Yunes Abed Al-Odeh, ID 854410503 – Case 1729/15

Charge: Possession of combat materiel

Defense: Atty. Fadi Qawasme

The hearing was postponed to 10.5.15.

Mahmoud Muhammad Yusri Rateb Awiwi, ID 850904384 - Case 6011/14

Charge: membership and activity

Defense: Atty. Fadi Qawasme

The hearing was postponed to 11.5.15.