A Moorpark man was arrested and charged in the death of Paul Kessler, a Jewish man who died after being injured during a rival pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian demonstrations in the Westlake village neighborhood of Thousand Oaks earlier this month.
Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko on Thursday announced Loay Alnaji has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and battery causing serious bodily injury. Both charges have special allegations that Alnaji personally inflicted great bodily injury.
Bail for Alnaji, a faculty member at Moorpark College, was set at $1 million.
No one answered the door Thursday morning at Alnaji’s home in Moorpark when an LAist reporter knocked on the door. The cul-de-sac was quiet.
A representative for Moorpark College did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Ventura County Community College District, where Alnaji also worked, said in a statement that he has been placed on administrative leave.
Kessler, 69, hit his head on the ground during a fall amid a confrontation during protests over the Israel-Hamas war on Nov. 5. Kessler was bleeding, but conscious and responsive when officers arrived. However, he died the next day after his injuries caused swelling and bleeding around his brain, said Christopher Young, the chief medical examiner for Ventura County.
Ventura County Sheriff Jim Fryhoff said that the investigation was initially hampered by witnesses who provided "conflicting statements about what the altercation and who the aggressor was."
Prosecutors can charge involuntary manslaughter when there is evidence that one person caused the death of another while committing a lower-level offense, like a misdemeanor battery. They can also argue that the person was performing a lawful act in an unlawful way and that their reckless or negligent behavior led directly to the killing.
Under state law, a conviction for involuntary manslaughter carries a potential punishment of up to four years in prison.
