'License to kill:' Court acquits Israeli officer who shot Solomon Tekah dead in 2019

An Israeli court has acquitted the police officer charged with causing the death of 18 -year-old Solomon Tekah of the Ethiopian community, five years ago, Israeli media reported on Tuesday.

The police officer claimed that when he arrived with his wife and children at a playground in a grove in Kiryat Haim he broke up a brawl between teenagers, after which the group, Tekah included, threw stones at him and his family.

Feeling their lives were in danger, the police officer said he shot at the ground.

Despite many versions of the incident, the evidence showed that the bullet ricocheted off the asphalt and hit Tekah.

The killing triggered widespread protests in 2019.

Tekah's family comments on verdict 

Tekah’s mother stated, “We are in pain and live in pain, not only we, the parents, but also our children. For a whole month we and the children did not sleep, we knew that the judge would not convict the police officer. We left the court in the middle because tolerating the judge’s words or hearing what he said was impossible.”

Tekah’s father said at the end of the trial, “We didn’t try, and we didn’t think we would get a fair trial from lawyers in Israel. We struggled for four years because we thought we might be able to bring change, but we were deceived.

“The 13 young people killed from the Ethiopian community were not killed by the brutal Hamas, but by our people, by policemen whom we finance with our money. They were killed because they were black. How can a policeman 30 meters away from the children dressed as a civilian shoot a boy just because he asked who he was and to introduce himself?

“There is no police to protect the Ethiopian community and no judge to give us a fair trial,” he added.

Leaving court, Tekah’s sister stated, “Now all policemen have a right to kill,” according to Israeli media.

Speaking with Maariv, the Tekah family’s lawyer said, “The family is disappointed with the results; we expected to hear a different decision but hope that the prosecutor’s office will decide to file an appeal.

Judge Ziad Falah said following the acquittal, “There is a lacuna in the procedures - in an event in which a police officer is in tangible and immediate danger... the policeman has the authority to shoot at the body of the person endangering him, and to forgo all the warning steps preceding the shooting.”

“Along with this authority, the policeman must reduce, as much as possible, the danger arising from his authority to shoot at the body of the person endangering him,” the judge added.

“The accused acted in self-defense when he carried out the shooting, which unfortunately led to the death of the deceased,” he concluded.

Public Committee Against Torture condemns ruling

The Justice Ministry’s Police Investigation Department (PID) released a statement which read, “The court ruled today that the filing of the indictment by the PID was justified and that the PID acted properly and professionally, both in the conduct of the investigation and at the time of the decision on the filing of the indictment and the management of the case. However, the court found that there was room to acquit the accused for several reasons. We will study the verdict and consider our steps.”

According to Maariv, the PID was reportedly considering an appeal.

The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel said, “Once again the system stands up and backs up a violent policeman, who shot to death a young man of Ethiopian origin claiming that he ‘felt a real threat to his life.’

It seems that as far as it concerns minority communities, any norm or directive that is intended precisely for this type of case, such as shooting warning shots in the air, for example, does not apply,” the committee continued.

“The wheel cannot be turned back, nor the life of the late Tekah, but it was possible to obtain a little justice for his family and the community from which he comes, with a conviction that would send a clear and resounding message that police violence is wrong and that violent police officers must be brought to justice. In its decision today, the court turned a cold shoulder to the victim and his family and added another injustice to the pile of injustices already caused in this sad case,” the committee noted.

Maariv, Yonah Jeremy Bob, and Mark Weiss contributed to this article.