During the sentencing of Mahmoud Musa, a Palestinian-American involved in a hate crime beating of a Jewish man in Times Square, a substantial group supporting him was ejected from a Manhattan courthouse on Tuesday. Musa and others targeted Joseph Borgen, beating him in 2021 during a planned attack on Jewish people. The assailants verbally assaulted Borgen with antisemitic slurs, leaving him with a concussion and the need for a neck brace.
Borgen’s backers, donning hats and T-shirts condemning antisemitism, remained composed in the courtroom. However, Musa’s supporters arrived later, expressing dissatisfaction when Judge Felicia Mennin sentenced him to seven years in prison, deemed “unfair” by his side. They were removed from the building, with claims of the judge being labeled as “racist.”
The incident occurred amid concerns of antisemitic violence, heightened by protests related to the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Borgen, although relieved by the sentence, remains apprehensive about ongoing tensions. He emphasized the importance of the strong prison sentence as a deterrent against hate crimes in New York City. Two other attackers received shorter sentences, while the fate of two more remains undetermined.