The California state attorney general’s agreement with five current and former Stanford University students, under which criminal charges would be dropped against the five for occupying and vandalizing the university president’s office in a June 2024 anti-Israel protest, is drawing criticism from Jewish groups.
The Jewish Community Relations Council Bay Area and Jewish Silicon Valley said that the agreement “sends the troubling message that politically motivated destruction of property carries minimal legal consequences” and added that they were “troubled” that the court hearing, at which the agreement was announced, was held on Yom Kippur.
“That a hearing so closely connected to debates over rising antisemitism was made inaccessible to many in the Jewish community demonstrates a lack of sensitivity and cultural competency,” the two said.
The state’s agreement with the five will see the latter each undergo 100 hours of community service and collectively pay nearly $52,000 in restitution.
A spokesman for the state attorney general told JNS that the defendants agreed to a prosecutorial diversion program, in which the charges will be dropped if they complete the community service and pay restitution.
“This resolution requires the defendants to make amends to the community for their actions through extensive community service and ensures they fully reimburse Stanford for all repairs,” the spokesman told JNS.
“Although initial reporting suggested a higher damages figure, our office worked closely with Stanford to generate a complete and accurate accounting of the full cost of repairs for all damages caused by the charged defendants, which was ultimately determined to be $51,973.37,” the spokesman said.
Failure to comply with the resolution will result in the case going back to trial, according to the spokesman.
The state “handled this high-profile case with the same level of attention to detail, impartiality and thoroughness that we bring to every criminal case entrusted to us,” the spokesman told JNS. “While we fully respect the right of individuals to protest peacefully, when those individuals break the law, they must be held accountable for their actions, with each case evaluated based on the merits and the totality of the circumstances.”
“We believe this outcome serves the best interests of the community and all parties involved,” the spokesman added.
Luisa Rapport, director of media relations for the private university, told JNS that “Stanford has a long-standing policy of non-interference with criminal proceedings and the decision on how to resolve the case rested with the California attorney general’s office, based on the evidence gathered.”
“We respect the integrity of our justice system,” Rapport told JNS.
A mistrial was declared in February, after a jury deadlocked on the two felony charges, conspiracy to trespass and vandalism. In May, Kelley Paul, a Santa Clara County superior court judge, ordered Jeffrey Rosen, the county’s Jewish district attorney, to recuse himself from retrying the case.
Paul determined that Rosen’s public comments and fundraising emails relating the case to Jew-hatred, even though no hate crime charges were involved, showed that the prosecution was not “disinterested,” the Mercury News reported. The case was turned over to the state attorney general’s office.
