AFP
A computer science professor from California has been charged with involuntary manslaughter for the death of a Jewish man at a pro-Palestinian demonstration where an altercation broke out.
Loay Alnaji, 50, was arrested and remanded into custody, the Ventura County Sheriff's Office said on Thursday.
He is being held in lieu of a $1 million bail.
Alnaji was charged with involuntary manslaughter and battery causing serious bodily injury, the county district attorney's office said.
Police say Paul Kessler, 69, died from an injury to his head after an altercation with Alnaji on 5 November in Thousand Oaks, the site of a confrontation between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protesters.
Footage on social media appeared to show Kessler lying on the ground clutching his head.
Alnaji was arrested after the incident, and his home was searched, but police released him for lack of evidence.
Witnesses provided "contradictory statements on the nature of the altercation and the identity of the assailant," according to the sheriff's office.
According to the county coroner's office, Kessler also had a non-lethal wound on the left side of his face.
Authorities said Alnaji had been cooperative with authorities and was among people at the scene who called 911 for emergency help after Kessler hit the ground.
US media identified Alnaji as a professor of computer science at Ventura Community College.
AFP
