{"id":6698,"date":"2026-05-15T17:02:39","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T17:02:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=6698"},"modified":"2026-05-15T17:02:39","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T17:02:39","slug":"justice-department-to-seek-death-penalty-for-man-charged-with-killing-2-israeli-embassy-staffers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=6698","title":{"rendered":"Justice Department to seek death penalty for man charged with killing 2 Israeli Embassy staffers"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN<\/strong><\/p>\n

WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 The Justice Department will seek the death penalty for the man accused of\u00a0fatally shooting two staff members\u00a0of the Israeli Embassy in Washington outside a Jewish museum, prosecutors said in a\u00a0.<\/p>\n

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Elias Rodriguez faces federal hate crime and murder charges in the killings of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim as they left an event at the museum last May. Rodriguez shouted \u201cFree Palestine\u201d during the shooting and later told police, \u201cI did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza,\u201d according to his indictment.<\/p>\n

The charges against Rodriguez include a hate crime resulting in death. The indictment also includes notice of special findings, which allows prosecutors to pursue the death penalty.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy message to anyone who seeks to commit political violence in this district \u2014 D.C. is not the place. You will be held accountable and you will face the full wrath of the law,\u201d Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, said at an unrelated news conference Friday in which she revealed the Justice Department\u2019s death penalty decision.<\/p>\n

The hate crimes charges mean prosecutors will have to prove that Rodriguez was motivated by antisemitism when he opened fire on Lischinsky and Milgrim, a young couple who were about to become engaged. Milgrim was a U.S. citizen and Lischinsky was an Israeli citizen working in the U.S.<\/p>\n

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Prosecutors have described the killing as calculated and planned, saying Rodriguez flew to the Washington region from Chicago ahead of the May 21 event at the Capital Jewish Museum with a handgun in his checked luggage.<\/p>\n

Witnesses described him pacing outside before approaching a group of four people and opening fire. Surveillance video showed Rodriguez advancing closer to Lischinsky and Milgrim as they fell to the ground, leaning over them and firing additional shots. He appeared to reload before jogging off, officials have said.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

After the shooting, authorities say Rodriguez went inside the museum and said, \u201cI did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza, I am unarmed,\u201d according to court documents. He also told detectives that he admired\u00a0an active-duty Air Force member\u00a0who set himself on fire outside the Israeli Embassy in February 2024, describing the man as \u201ccourageous\u201d and a \u201cmartyr.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Palestinians in Gaza mark anniversary of 1948 mass expulsion and say today\u2019s catastrophe is worse<\/a><\/p>\n

Associated Press writer Eric Tucker contributed to this report.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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