Justice Department to seek death penalty for man charged with killing 2 Israeli Embassy staffers

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department will seek the death penalty for the man accused of fatally shooting two staff members of the Israeli Embassy in Washington outside a Jewish museum, prosecutors said in a court filing Friday.

Elias Rodriguez faces federal hate crime and murder charges in the killings of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim as they left an event at the museum last May. Rodriguez shouted “Free Palestine” during the shooting and later told police, “I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza,” according to his indictment.

The charges against Rodriguez include a hate crime resulting in death. The indictment also includes notice of special findings, which allows prosecutors to pursue the death penalty.

“My message to anyone who seeks to commit political violence in this district — D.C. is not the place. You will be held accountable and you will face the full wrath of the law,” Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, said at an unrelated news conference Friday in which she revealed the Justice Department’s death penalty decision.

The hate crimes charges mean prosecutors will have to prove that Rodriguez was motivated by antisemitism when he opened fire on Lischinsky and Milgrim, a young couple who were about to become engaged. Milgrim, 26, was a U.S. citizen and Lischinsky, 30, was an Israeli citizen working in the U.S.

Prosecutors have described the killing as calculated and planned, saying Rodriguez flew to the Washington region from Chicago ahead of the May 21 event at the Capital Jewish Museum with a handgun in his checked luggage.

Witnesses described him pacing outside before approaching a group of four people and opening fire. Surveillance video showed Rodriguez advancing closer to Lischinsky and Milgrim as they fell to the ground, leaning over them and firing additional shots. He appeared to reload before jogging off, officials have said.

After the shooting, authorities say Rodriguez went inside the museum and said, “I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza, I am unarmed,” according to court documents. He also told detectives that he admired an active-duty Air Force member who set himself on fire outside the Israeli Embassy in February 2024, describing the man as “courageous” and a “martyr.”

In Friday’s court filing, prosecutors said Rodriguez’s actions were “motivated by political, ideological, national, and religious bias, contempt, and hatred.” He “targeted individuals whom he perceived to have attended an event for young Jewish professionals … to amplify the effect of his crimes,” they wrote.

Attorneys for Rodriguez didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment. Several weeks before Friday’s announcement, defense attorneys had a meeting with Justice Department officials where they could present evidence that they believe would weigh against seeking the death penalty in the case.

The next court appearance for Rodriguez is set for June 30. A trial date hasn’t been scheduled yet.

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Associated Press writer Eric Tucker contributed to this report.

Michael Kunzelman, The Associated Press