Teen gets educational punishment for threatening Jewish kids
Australian youth who terrorized children on a school bus with threats of slitting their throats and anti-Semitic chants will be required to attend a Shabbat meal, visit Sydney Jewish Museum and read Holocaust literature.
The young man will be forced to attend a Shabbat meal with a Jewish family, visit the Sydney Jewish Museum and read Holocaust literature, JTA reports.
All of the five offenders were minors. One was arrested, two others received warnings and the other two were let off.
The incident could have ended as another anti-Semitic act experienced by the Australia's Jewish community in recent months, but the Australian legal system has other plans.
'Victim given a measure of closure'
A surprising "plea bargain" was agreed upon at a justice conference in the presence of one victim and her parents, New South Wales Jewish Board of Deputies chief executive officer Vic Alhadeff, who was representing the other victims, a police officer, a social worker and the offender’s parents, JTA reported.
As part of his punishment, according to the British Independent newspaper, the boy will participate in a tolerance program run by the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies. It was also recommended that he attend a Shabbat dinner and visit the Sydney Jewish Museum.
He was also given a reading list which includes books written by Holocaust survivors such as Primo Levi’s "If This is a Man" and Elie Wiesel’s "Night."
Alhadeff said that the justice conference provided "a measure of closure to the young girl who was present.
"It gave her an opportunity to question the offender, to hear from him and to hear him express remorse for his actions. At the same time, he could hear directly from some of those affected as to the impact of his actions."
