Harvard accused of lack of cooperation in prosecution of Israeli student's attackers
Harvard University has apparently not cooperated with a local district attorney’s office in the prosecution of two students who attacked an Israeli student at an Israel-Palestine protest last year.
The prosecution of the two students, Elom Tettey-Tamaklo and Ibrahim Bharmal, has reportedly been delayed for months as a result of Harvard’s uncooperativeness.
Harvard University has apparently not cooperated with a local district attorney’s office in the prosecution of two students who attacked an Israeli student at an Israel-Palestine protest last year.
The prosecution of the two students, Elom Tettey-Tamaklo and Ibrahim Bharmal, has reportedly been delayed for months as a result of Harvard’s uncooperativeness.
The announcement was made by Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney Ursula Knight who is in charge of the department that is prosecuting the case. “Harvard police essentially refused to investigate,” Knight described, as reported by The Washington Free Beacon.
“Harvard PD has not done a follow up investigation, and the defendants are seeking a pre-arraignment disposition,” added Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office spokesman James Borghesani, per the Free Beacon. “Harvard was asked to do a follow up investigation and has not.”
Another attorney told the outlet that a university police department declining to cooperate with local prosecutors is extremely rare, saying: “Never in all my time have I ever heard of a police department refusing to investigate a case in which the D.A.’s office is asking for their assistance.”
The attorney for the Israeli student who was attacked described his “shock” when he learned “that Harvard has refused to cooperate with the District Attorney’s Office’s investigation.”
“As always, we value our partnership with the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, and Harvard has cooperated fully throughout the DA’s office investigation,” Harvard spokesperson Jason Newton told the Free Beacon in a statement. “It remains unclear what further role they are asking HUPD to play.”
Campus Reform recently reported that Harvard hired Liz Magill, the former president of the University of Pennsylvania who resigned after making controversial statements during a congressional hearing on campus anti-Semitism.
In December, Magill failed to definitively state that calling for the “genocide of Jews” is a violation of campus policies.
Campus Reform additionally reported in August that a federal court denied Harvard’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit alleging anti-Jewish discrimination at the school.
U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns wrote that the Harvard administration failed to quell “an eruption of antisemitism” on its campus. “In other words, the facts as pled show that Harvard failed its Jewish students,” Stearns said..
Campus Reform has contacted Harvard University for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
