Hate crime enhancer attached to charges against Miami Beach man after double shooting
Miami-Dade prosecutors put a hate crime enhancement on the charges against a Miami Beach man charged in the Feb. 15 shooting of two Israeli tourists.
Monday's action turns the two counts of second-degree attempted murder against 27-year-old Mordechai Brafman into first-degree attempted murder counts. The charges will be formally filed and Brafman will enter a plea at his Mar. 10 arraignment.
Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office spokesman Ed Griffith said in an email that the office 'reviews every criminal offense that has the potential of being motivated by hate, to see if Florida's hate crime enhancement statute is applicable to the specific situation.'
Brafman, police say in the arrest report, 'spontaneously stated' to them that 'while he was driving his truck, he saw two Palestinians and shot and killed both.'
READ MORE: Why were 2 people shot in Miami Beach? The suspect said he 'saw 2 Palestinians,' cops say
Brafman didn't kill Ari Rabi and father Yaron Rabi, Israelis who were fellow members of the Jewish faith. Social media posts by the Rabis back up police statements that Ari was shot in the left shoulder and a bullet grazed Yaron in a forearm.
Police say Brafman and the Rabis didn't know each other, and surveillance video shows Brafman firing 17 shots at the Rabis' Hyundai as it passed in the 4800 block of Pine Tree Drive.
The Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Florida chapter released a statement Tuesday in praise of the hate crime enhancement. Miami Beach City Commissioner Alex Fernandez and Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava came out last week in favor of the hate crime enhancement, but CAIR-Florida spokesman Wilfredo Amr Ruiz wanted to see more.
'To date, we have not heard or read any statement from Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner or Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava assuring the safety and security of Palestinian and Arab residents and visitors.
'We find their silence appalling and an affront to their constituents, residents, and visitors — Muslims and Christians of Arab or Palestinian descent. Mayor Meiner and Mayor Levine Cava must publicly assure these communities and their families that they are safe on the streets of Miami Beach and throughout the county.'
Brafman is being held on no bond at Miami-Dade Corrections' Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
'Mr. Brafman is forced to spend the majority of his time in custody in isolation, and without proper mental health treatment and support,' his attorney, Dustin Tischler, said in a text message.
In an email last week, Tischler said Brafman was having 'a severe mental health emergency' at the time of the shooting and 'his ability to make sound judgments was significantly compromised.'
Tischler said Wednesday that 'Mr. Brafman is currently being evaluated by several medical professionals to determine his competency to proceed as well as his mental capacity at the time of the incident.'
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