Psychiatrist approves Jerusalem gay pride stabber to stand trial for murder

Yishai Schlissel to be tried for murder of Shira Banki and stabbing 5 others.

By DANIEL K. EISENBUD
Updated: AUGUST 21, 2015 05:28
Yishai Schlissel arrested after stabbing six people at the Jerusalem gay pride parade (photo credit: REUTERS)
Yishai Schlissel arrested after stabbing six people at the Jerusalem gay pride parade
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Following a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation, Yishai Schlissel – who killed a teenage girl and seriously wounded five others in a stabbing rampage at Jerusalem’s annual Gay Pride Parade last month – was on Thursday deemed fit to stand trial.
The decision was made after Schlissel was examined by a court-appointed psychiatrist during a 48-hour detention at a psychiatric hospital. A previous psychiatric evaluation was inconclusive.
Schlissel, 50, who is ultra-Orthodox and from Modi’in Illit in the West Bank, was released from prison three weeks before the July 30 attack after serving 10 years of a 12-year sentence for committing a similar crime at the 2005 Jerusalem Gay Pride Parade.
Since his arrest, he has refused representation and rejected the state’s authority.
His youngest victim, Shira Banki, 16, died of her wounds.
The five other victims sustained serious-to-moderate wounds and are expected to recover.
Head of the Jerusalem District Police Asst.-Ch. Moshe Edri said after the attack that his agency did not have concrete intelligence that Schlissel would be at the parade, while the Judea and Samaria District Police said it was not required to track Schlissel after his parole, even though he lives within their jurisdiction.
Police have since opened an investigation to determine how Schlissel – who published and distributed letters announcing his violent intentions days before carrying out the attack – was not tracked by police and was allowed to attend the parade.
The leaflet which Schlissel had printed and circulated stated: “It is the obligation of every Jew to keep his soul from punishment and stop this giant desecration of God’s name next Thursday. There is an obligation to stop the parade of sin at all costs.”
Although the investigatory committee’s initial findings were presented to Security Minister Gilad Erdan on Sunday night, Erdan ordered acting Israel Police head Asst.- Ch. Bentzi Sau to continue the probe.
The ministry said the final analysis is expected to be presented in the coming days.
Yarden Noy, 26, who was stabbed in the back during the attack, called into question the competency of the officers handling the case. “The way the police dealt with me and my family was negligent in ways that make you question the way they’re dealing with the investigation itself,” he said after being released from the hospital. “I hope they’ll do their job, because they didn’t prevent a murder that they should have prevented.”


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