A man has been sentenced to six months and a week behind bars for intentionally damaging a religious property in New York City.
Dan Sohail, 36, was sentenced in Brooklyn federal court after pleading guilty to intentionally damaging religious property in January.
He was also ordered to pay $20,000 in restitution and has already spent six months in custody, allowing him to be released in about a week.
Sohail was charged with intentionally damaging the Chabad Lubavitch World Headquarters, where he repeatedly rammed his vehicle into the building's side entrance, damaging a door and his car's front bumper.
No injuries were reported during the incident, but prosecutors sought a 14-month sentence as a deterrent to future attacks on Jewish institutions amid a rise in antisemitic hate crimes.
However, the judge declined the request, citing a psychiatric report that highlighted Sohail's mental health challenges, which "played an important role" in his sentencing.
The judge also expressed skepticism about the government's push for a stricter sentence as a deterrent, saying it was based on an initial mistaken impression that the attack was a hate crime.
Sohail's lawyer argued that her client was struggling with psychological issues, including depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, and that the attack was "an irrational cry for help."
The judge acknowledged that Sohail's case was a "sad tale" and took into account his lawyer's arguments, ultimately deciding on a sentence that would allow him to be released in about a week.
