From New York trial judge Althea Drysdale's opinion Tuesday in People v. Amin:
This case stems from an incident where the Defendant is alleged to have stalked, taunted, and harassed a group of Israeli citizens for over ten minutes while they were sightseeing in Times Square, culminating in the assault of one of the tourists. As part of his omnibus motions, the Defendant moves to dismiss the charges of Stalking in the First Degree …, Stalking in the Third Degree …, and Aggravated Harassment …, arguing that the prosecution elicited insufficient evidence to constitute the necessary element of a "course of conduct" for those crimes. [The decision appeared not to deal with the assault charge. -EV] …
Statement of Allegations
On Wednesday, October 18, 2023 at approximately 9:30pm, the Complainant, an Israeli citizen, was visiting New York City with a group of six friends when they decided to stop by Times Square to sightsee. Several members of the group were wearing items that disclosed their religious affiliation: specifically, all five male members of the group were wearing "kippahs," traditional Jewish head-coverings also known as a "yarmulkes" as well as visible "tzitzits," which are strings that adorn the corners of a "tallit," a Jewish prayer shawl that is worn under clothing throughout the day.
After exiting the subway station located at 42nd Street and Times Square, the group was approached by a man, later identified as the Defendant, who appeared to be of Middle Eastern descent. The Complainant noticed that the Defendant was wearing what the Complainant described as a red and white "keffiyeh," a traditional headdress worn by men in the Middle East, around his head and face.
While the Defendant was initially playing what the Complainant described as "loud English music" on a speaker that he was carrying in his hand, the Complainant observed that, upon seeing the Complainant and his group of friends, the Defendant changed the music to a song in Arabic. Almost immediately after doing so, the Defendant said "Free Palestine" and stated that "the Jews have to die." The Complainant also recalled that the Defendant stated, in sum and substance, that he was "happy with what Hamas did to the Jews," and repeatedly yelled "Allah Kashi," which the Complainant understood to mean in Arabic "God is Great." The Complainant further heard the Defendant state that he was "willing to die for the sake of Gaza."
