Shaul Spitzer Pleads Not Guilty

An 18-year-old Hasidic student, listening to court proceedings in Yiddish through an interpreter, pleaded not guilty Friday in an attempted murder case that has brought unusual attention to a religious enclave in New York.

  

Suspect in NY fire pleads not guilty
By JIM FITZGERALD • Associated Press

NEW CITY, N.Y. – An 18-year-old Hasidic student, listening to court proceedings in Yiddish through an interpreter, pleaded not guilty Friday in an attempted murder case that has brought unusual attention to a religious enclave in New York.

Shaul Spitzer of New Square is accused of severely burning a neighbor, Aron Rottenberg, outside Rottenberg's home. Rottenberg claims in a lawsuit that Spitzer was acting at the direction of the village's chief rabbi, David Twersky, because Rottenberg had stopped praying at Twersky's synagogue.

Rottenberg suffered third-degree burns on half his body in the pre-dawn hours of May 22 when he confronted someone carrying a flammable liquid outside his home and "we both just burst into flames," he said.

Family members said they had been monitoring a surveillance camera and fearing an attack because they had endured broken windows and threats ever since Rottenberg began worshipping at a nearby nursing home instead of the main synagogue.

Spitzer was arrested soon after, with burns on his hands and arms.

Rottenberg, who was hospitalized until Monday, was not in court Friday.

Spitzer, in black Hasidic garb - with a white bandage on his left hand - was accompanied by four bearded relatives as he was arraigned in Rockland County Court on charges of attempted murder, attempted arson and assault. His lawyer, former Rockland District Attorney Kenneth Gribetz, entered not-guilty pleas to all charges. He could be sentenced to 25 years in prison if convicted of attempted murder.

Gribetz said outside court that Spitzer did not intend to harm anyone or to burn down Rottenberg's house, as police have alleged. He declined to give a defense account of what happened.

"He's very remorseful, contrite," Gribetz said of Spitzer. "He's mentally scarred, most of the time he's crying." He called Spitzer's actions "childish" but did not elaborate.

Gribetz also said Twersky, who has decried the attack and has not been charged, had no involvement.

"The grand rabbi had nothing to do with this," Gribetz said. "There were no conversations, direct, indirect, off the record, on the record." He said Spitzer had done some volunteer work for Twersky but "is not a colleague, not a confidant."

New Square is an insular village of 7,000 people, nearly all of them members of the Skver Hasidic sect. The sect is named for the Ukrainian village of Skver, where its members had been decimated during the Holocaust and for which New Square is named.

Rottenberg's lawyer has requested a federal investigation into what he called "hate crimes" by the religious leadership.

Spitzer was allowed to remain free on $300,000 until a July 28 court date. But he was ordered to stay away from the Rottenberg family. And the judge told him to meet with police later Friday for fingerprinting, which wasn't done when he was arrested because of his hand injuries.

 [Hat Tip for the video: 613 Enforcer.]

Comments

[Robert Wisler]

He needed an interpreter? They don't even teach these poor kids English????

[charlie runkel]

25 years is not enough if he is let off it legitimizes further acts of terror by other extreme chasidim

[Robert Wisler]

And he's only "crying all the time" because he's terrified, not because he has the slightest tinge of remorse for his evil actions.... These chassidim are raised with absolutely no empathy for those outside their sects.

[Gevalt!]

i guess this is the legal analysis that the attorney is using when counseling his client to plead no"not guilty"

...almost all crimes require proof of actus reus (physical act) and med rea (metnal state) and the concurrence of the act and mental state...

a crime may require not only doing an act, but also the doing of it with specific intent or objective...the existence of specific intent cannot be inferred from the doing of the act...

attempt - reuiqres the intent to complete the crime.

murder - "unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought, committed with state of mind:1. intent to kill;2. intent to inflict great bodily injury;3. reckless infdifferent to an unjustifiable high risk to human life; OR4. intent to commit a felony "

I guess he is going to present a scenario that Spitzer did not have the mens rea to meet all the elements of the crime...

however, prosecution will argue that intentional use of deadly weapon (in this case fire) authorizes a permissive inference of intent to kill...

basically, spitzer is getting terible advise...he should have just plead guilty and worked a deal...like rubashkin, his arrogance in not accepting responsibility and pleading guilty will result in maximum or stiff jail time once convicted...

really really bad advise that was given to him...

[Gevalt!]

sorry for typos...i meant to hit preview not post...

here it is again cleaned up with an added defense rebuttal:

I guess this is the legal analysis that the attorney is using when counseling his client to plead no"not guilty"
1. ...almost all crimes require proof of actus reus (physical act) and mens rea (mental state) and the concurrence of the act and mental state...
a crime may require not only doing an act, but also the doing of it with specific intent or objective...the existence of specific intent cannot be inferred from the doing of the act...
attempt - requires the intent to complete the crime.
murder - "unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought, committed with state of mind:1. intent to kill;2. intent to inflict great bodily injury;3. reckless indifferent to an unjustifiable high risk to human life; OR4. intent to commit a felony "
I guess he is going to present a scenario that Spitzer did not have the mens rea to meet all the elements of the crime...
however, prosecution will argue that intentional use of deadly weapon (in this case fire) authorizes a permissive inference of intent to kill...

[Added note: The Defense rebuttal to that is attempt is a specific intent crime - even when the crime attempt is not..thus, although murder does not require a specific intent to kill (e.g., the intent to cause serious bodily injury can be enough), attempted murder requires specific intent to kill. Without that intent, a defendant is not guilty of attempted murder...not a terrible argument since they can show Spitzer only meant to scare them away and not kill them...but that doesnt explain how he will get around the arson and other charges]
basically, spitzer is getting terrible advise...he should have just plead guilty and worked a deal...like rubashkin, his arrogance in not accepting responsibility and pleading guilty will result in maximum or stiff jail time once convicted...
really really bad advise that was given to him...

[Leah]

25 years is not enough if he is let off it legitimizes further acts of terror by other extreme chasidim

Posted by: charlie runkel | June 24, 2011 at 02:00 PM

True, need at LEST 27 years! Maybe a change in venue is called for.

[Alter Kocker]

Spitzer is a sacrificial lamb. He is being given legal representation by an individual that is obviously working for the Grand Rabbi. This lawyer is obviously charged with keeping the Grand Rabbi safe from prosecution by allowing the blame to fall squarely on Spitzer's shoulders. The defence is likely to show Spitzer as mentally challenged or disturbed. This will play into the entire community saying that Spitzer imagined that the Rebbe wanted Rottenberg eliminated.

In short, Spitzer will be imprisoned or sent to a state facility where he will serve a sentence of indeterminate length in order to save the Rebbe. His reward for this will come to him in the next life.

The Rebbe walks.

[Leah]

True, need at LEAST 27 years! Maybe a change in venue is called for.

Posted by: Leah | June 24, 2011 at 02:22 PM

Sorry, I couldn't resist :)

[devorah]

The video of Spitzer didn't look like he was crying at all. Laughing to the point that I wondered what was so funny in a classroom full of students all dressed in black.

[Bas Melech]

I do not think that Spitzer understood or understands the consequences of his actions. Most young people raised in that environment don't. They are naive to the consequences of their actions like the bachurim in Japan.

Rebbis and Rabbis rarely say anything directly. Their followers infer them meaning of words and expressions. Spitzer knew/knows that the Rebbi wants the Rottenbergs to leave Skvere. His mens rea was to throw a fire bomb into their house and force the family out. His actus reus was throwing the fire bomb. A fire would start and destroy the house. The family would leave. The Rebbi would be happy. The Rebbi and his chasidim would praise Spitzer and reward him with a kallah.

I have known young men such as Spitzer. I doubt that he thought that his actions could cause death. He never thought that he'd be arrested and put on trial. The Rebbi protects him. He might not yet understand that he is the Rebbi's useful idiot.

Some of you commenters know this. You had been in his place at one time, faithful to the Rebbi. Others of you have such hatred of chasidim and ultra-orthodox that you want all of the to disappear.

Spitzer should be punished. He should have spent time in jail awaiting trial, so he could see the reality of his actions. After he realizes how the Rebbe abandoned him, Spitzer will become one of his biggest enemies.

[Robert Wisler]

Amen Bas Melech. Thanks for an excellent analysis.

[k]

HEY SHMARYAH
THE CHETRIT CASE WAS DISMISSED BY THE COURT
why don't you make a nice headline out of that, or do you not like good news.
So much for all the crap that was spewed against them by some losers on this site

[Shmarya]

Idiot.

The case was not "dismissed" by the court.

Chetrit SETTLED the case out of court – meaning he paid the plaintiff money.

http://therealdeal.com/newyork/articles/discrimination-lawsuit-against-the-joseph-chetrit-and-clan-by-former-employee-les-kramsky-settled-out-of-court

[Anonny]

His lawyer's statements about Rabbi Twersky are unethical - who does he represent, Spitzer or the rebbe?

[jj]

this story gives a whole new meaning to the term Farbrente chusid!. any new meaning to a kalte litvak?

[HeshMan]

If the whole episode was an accident, what did twerski condemn?
did u ever hear of anybody condemning an (unintentional) car accident?
if he is telling the truth why can't he shed some light right now on what supposedly really happened?

[613ENFORCER]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfoNuT5M8YA&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[David]

He said Spitzer had done some volunteer work for Twersky but "is not a colleague, not a confidant."

I though he was the butler?

Also, it is a disgrace that he was never taught English and needed an interpreter. I wonder if the interpreter was giving a fair and accurate account of the proceedings to him?

[David]

Coming to America to go to court must have been quite an experience for the hitman. After all, they don't have courts in Jewland and the Rebbe is judge, jury, and in this case, executioner...

[WoolSilkCotton]

++Bas Melech | June 24, 2011 at 03:03 PM++

Good points.

[WoolSilkCotton]

"...The Rebbi and his chasidim would praise Spitzer and reward him with a kallah..."

Ah, heterosexual marriage, the prize rewarded for being a loyal robot of the Rebbe, and the solution to life's problems.

[Morris the Katz]

I don't know which outrages me more:

1. That he tried to burn a family to death (no "alleged" needed because thhere, he was caught red-handed, literally).

2. That his scumbag of a shyster is doing what scumbag shysters do.

3. That this skinny shmendrick needs an interpreter, even though he was born right here in the USA.

[seymour]

maybe the interpreter issue is some type of ploy that will be used later in court to say he is has mental problem

I wonder how many square get pissed off by people who only speak Spanish

what nonsense my parents and my grandparents who where survivors when they can to America they learned to speak English. They even learned how to spell but somehow that skipped my generation or at least me

what crap is this

[anuran]

Ah, heterosexual marriage, the prize rewarded for being a loyal robot of the Rebbe, and the solution to life's problems.

Posted by: WoolSilkCotton

His reward for attempted murder: getting to be the penetrating partner instead of the rabbi's receptacle.

[WoolSilkCotton]

++maybe the interpreter issue is some type of ploy that will be used later in court to say he is has mental problem++

I was thinking the same thing. He will try to build a case of a mental brainwashed state like described above by Bas Melech 3:03.

[David]

++maybe the interpreter issue is some type of ploy that will be used later in court to say he is has mental problem++

It could also be that if the interpreter is working for the Rebbe and not the court, that the hitman will be led to say certain things to the court that will lay the blame solely on the hitman and not the Rebbe.

[WoolSilkCotton]

It would be interesting to see who exactly this Yiddish interpreter is.

[itchiemayer]

This attorney has already committed malpractice. Any Spitzer family members or friends out there - this attorney is being paid to defend the Grand Rabbi, not Shaul. Do something before it's too late.

[Shmarya]

This attorney has already committed malpractice. Any Spitzer family members or friends out there - this attorney is being paid to defend the Grand Rabbi, not Shaul. Do something before it's too late.

Posted by: itchiemayer | June 25, 2011 at 11:10 PM

I think he's doing what the Spitzer's want – protect the leader of their cult.

I'm sure the kid thinks he's holy for going along with this, and he probably has a bracha from the rebbe promising him long life, etc., and an early release from prison.

[Morris the Katz]

Now that gay marriage is the law of the land in New York, Shaul Spitzer can legally become the wife of Big Bad Bubba while he does his time in one of New York's Big Houses.

L'Chaim to a long and happy (from Big Bad Bubba's standpoint) marriage!