A Milwaukee rabbi and his son, who destroyed a mural that displayed a swastika over a Star of David and stated “the irony of becoming what you once hated,” were sentenced on Wednesday.
Peter Mehler, 74, pleaded no contest, and his son, Zechariah Mehler, 43, pleaded guilty to a reduced misdemeanor charge of criminal damage to property as a party to a crime. The charge had originally been filed as a felony.
The building is owned by Ihsan Atta, a Palestinian American.
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Jack Davila sentenced the elder Mehler to a $50 fine. Mehler’s son received six months of probation and 25 hours of community service, and both were ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution to Atta.
During sentencing, the judge reportedly said that the decision was “about the actions of the destruction and the taking down of private property” and not about political disagreement.
According to local outlet Fox 6, Atta expressed “support for Hamas and support of the destruction of Israel” while speaking at the sentencing. The judge interrupted him, and Atta left the courtroom. Deputies brought him back.
Atta apologized to the judge. “However, please understand that I didn’t feel and I still don’t feel that I was saying anything wrong,” he said.
“I know you don’t, and that’s part of the disconnect here of the wider issue,” Davila said. “We’re not going to solve the world’s problems with this hearing.”
According to the criminal complaint, the father and son were captured on surveillance footage on Sept. 14, 2024, using tools to dismantle the mural mounted on a building on North Holton Street.
The footage shows the younger Mehler striking the mural with an ax and a sledgehammer. His father helped pry apart its wooden frame.
The following day, the son returned and removed the remaining panels. “I didn’t get the job done yesterday, so I might as well get it done today,” he said, according to the complaint.
The mural’s destruction exceeded $6,000 in value, prosecutors said. They cited the costs paid and owed to the artist and the materials.
At the sentencing, Zechariah Mehler told the judge that he submits to the rule of law, but at the time of the incident, he was convinced “that it would eventually escalate into violence against my community” and that, two years later, he does not believe he has been proven wrong.
