Calif. Synagogue Shooter to Face Death Penalty for Murder of 60-year-old Congregant

March 8, 2020

< 1 minute

The San Diego County District Attorney’s Office announced on Thursday that it will seek the death penalty against John Earnest, the 20-year-old man charged with shooting and killing congregant Lori Gilbert-Kaye, 60, and wounding three people, including senior Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein, at Chabad of Poway in Southern California during Shabbat-morning services on April 27, 2019.

The trial is slated to begin on June 2 though attorneys are scheduled to return to court next month to figure out a likely timeline for the proceedings.

“Jury selection will take some time because potential jurors will have to be screened for their views on the death penalty,” reported The San Diego Union-Tribune.

If Earnest is convicted, the jury will then be asked to recommend whether the defendant should face capital punishment or life in prison without the possibility of parole. The judge will ultimately make the final decision.

Whether Earnest could be executed if found guilty will remain at issue after a moratorium was set in place by Gov. Gavin Newsom last year on carrying out the death penalty in California. The execution chamber at San Quentin State Prison was shuttered.

In May, Earnest was charged with 113 federal hate crime-related counts. He has pleaded not guilty to all state and federal charges.

Share this article

Donate today to support Israel’s needy

$10

$25

$50

$100

$250

CUSTOM AMOUNT

Subscribe

Prophecy from the Bible is revealing itself as we speak. Israel365 News is the only media outlet reporting on it.

Sign up to our free daily newsletter today to get all the most important stories directly to your inbox. See how the latest updates in Jerusalem and the world are connected to the prophecies we read in the Bible. .