{"id":342,"date":"2026-05-15T17:44:41","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T17:44:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=342"},"modified":"2026-05-15T17:44:41","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T17:44:41","slug":"doj-will-seek-death-penalty-for-suspect-in-fatal-shooting-at-d-c-jewish-museum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=342","title":{"rendered":"DOJ will seek death penalty for suspect in fatal shooting at D.C. Jewish museum"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"\n
A photo of Israeli Embassy staff members Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim is seen at a candlelight vigil outside the White House last May following their fatal shooting at the Capital Jewish Museum in D.C. (Kevin Dietsch\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

Federal prosecutors said Friday that they will seek the death penalty for the man charged with killing a young couple<\/a> at the Capital Jewish Museum in D.C. last year.<\/p>

Read more Manuel Neuer extends Bayern Munich contract by another season at 40<\/a><\/p>\n

In a court filing<\/a>, the U.S. attorney\u2019s office in D.C. said Elias Rodriguez \u2014 who faces charges that include<\/a> murder and hate crimes \u2014 was \u201cmotivated by political, ideological, national, and religious bias, contempt, and hatred.\u201d<\/p>\n

Authorities have said Rodriguez had expressed deep anger toward Israel before approaching people leaving a \u201cYoung Diplomats Reception\u201d at the Capital Jewish Museum last May and opening fire.<\/p>\n

Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, 26,<\/a> a couple who had met while working for the Israeli Embassy in D.C., were both killed.<\/p>\n

In court papers, officials have said Rodriguez fired about 20 shots at them. During the shooting, they alleged, \u201che called out, \u2018Free Palestine.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for D.C., has previously called the shooting a \u201ctargeted act of terror.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a statement, Pirro said that the decision to seek the death penalty followed an \u201cextensive review of the facts and the law.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLet me be clear: anyone who commits acts of political violence in the nation\u2019s capital will face the full force of the law,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Attorneys for Rodriguez did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday about Pirro\u2019s office filing its notice that prosecutors would seek the death penalty for him.<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
The U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, speaks at a news conference last week in Washington. (Heather Diehl\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

The notice came as the Trump administration has sought to ramp up its use of, and support for, capital punishment.<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump is a longtime supporter of the death penalty, and officials within his administration have echoed that stance.<\/p>

Read more DOJ expected to drop fraud charges against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani<\/a><\/p>\n

Last month, the Justice Department said it was seeking to revive<\/a> a lethal injection protocol used during Trump\u2019s first term, when federal officials carried out 13 executions<\/a>. The agency also said it wanted to make other methods of execution, including firing squads and electric chairs, available for carrying out federal death sentences.<\/p>\n

The Biden administration had imposed a pause on executions. Shortly before President Joe Biden left office, he commuted the sentences<\/a> of 37 of the 40 people on federal death row, changing their punishments to life in prison. Trump and his allies have assailed that decision.<\/p>\n

After Trump returned to the White House, his second administration has emphasized its advocacy for the death penalty.<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
Attorney General Pam Bondi at a D.C. news conference in February. (Ben Curtis\/AP)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

Pam Bondi, who was attorney general until Trump forced her out<\/a> last month, had issued a directive<\/a> saying she was focused on \u201creviving the federal death penalty.\u201d<\/p>\n

When the Justice Department considers whether to pursue death sentences, the agency sends cases to an internal review committee to recommend whether to seek that punishment.<\/p>\n

Defense attorneys, as part of this process, are supposed to be given a chance to present their side and argue against the death penalty. The final decision rests with the attorney general.<\/p>\n

Trump has said he wants the death penalty used more<\/a> in D.C., which has strained<\/a> some defense teams.<\/p>\n

In the Capital Jewish Museum case, attorneys for Rodriguez wrote<\/a> last year that they needed more time than Justice Department officials were giving them to make their case against the death penalty.<\/p>\n

Prosecutors pushed back<\/a>, essentially saying the defense was being given enough time. Both sides later said in a joint court filing<\/a> that prosecutors had given the defense some more time. In another joint filing<\/a> last month, both sides wrote that the defense had met with the Justice Department\u2019s internal review committee that recommends whether to seek death sentences.<\/p>

Read more Middlesbrough wants Southampton expelled from Championship playoff final for spying<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The suspect in the May 2025 shooting that killed two people was \u201cmotivated by political, ideological, national, and religious bias,\u201d a court filing said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":325,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-342","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nDOJ will seek death penalty for suspect in fatal shooting at D.C. 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