Honenu Attorney Menashe Yado; Photo credit: Honenu
Sunday, July 5, 2020, 17:57 In a compromise agreement reached in a civil suit filed against Policeman Amir Marei and the Israeli Police, the State of Israel will compensate nine plaintiffs with the sum of 60,000 NIS. Honenu Attorney Menashe Yado filed the suit on behalf of the plaintiffs who were injured in three separate incidents by Marei during the course of his work. Marei was documented carrying out a violent detention, illegal detentions and illegal vehicular searches.
In the first incident, a couple was detained for an illegal search and the husband was brutally treated. In the second incident, Marei illegally detained two additional couples and conducted a lengthy search of their personal items and their equipment. In the third incident Marei detained an adult and two minors for body searches, during which he looked into the underwear of one of the minors.
In light of the incidents, Honenu filed a complaint with the Police Investigation Unit, and the officer in charge of public complaints recommended that Marei be fired. During dismissal proceedings Marei resigned of his own accord. Despite his conduct, the Jerusalem District Attorney’s office represented Marei in the suit against him, and the Israeli Police will compensate the plaintiffs in the framework of a compromise agreement between the sides. Policeman Marei himself, it turns out, will not compensate the injured parties out of his own pocket.
Honenu Attorney Menashe Yado responded to the decision: “It would have been appropriate for the Israeli Police to have done a serious ‘house cleaning’ following this case in which a policeman in several incidents brutally assaulted [detainees] and also forcibly demanded that people strip in their cars in the middle of the street, causing great humiliation.
“These are the incidents which we uncovered. I do not know how many incidents we did not uncover. We are pleased that the policeman resigned during the process of being fired and that the victims are being reasonably compensated. Nonetheless, we are displeased that the State of Israel decided to take on full responsibility for the compensation and not to hold the brutal policeman responsible for the damages or even part of them.”