But Steven Slimovitch, legal counsel for B’nai Brith, suggested the sentence should have been tougher given that the crime was motivated by hatred. “That would have said hate-motivated crimes necessarily will be far more severely punished.”
Mr. Slimovitch noted arson carries a maximum 14-year sentence. “To say that we are incredibly disappointed with the sentence is not true. I would have to say that we would have thought it would have been more severe.” Mr. Slimovitch said the Jewish community had been traumatized by the incident, which he said raised grim memories of Nazi tyranny for Holocaust survivors and was a “removal of innocence” for younger Jews.
Bill Surkis, Quebec regional director for B’Nai Brith Quebec, agreed the sentence should have been more severe.
“The message, in my mind, was not strong enough and that [message] is we can accept zero intolerance,” he said. He acknowledged the sentence was tougher than others in the past. “Does it have the impact of being the kind of thing that will block further terrorist action? I don’t know. I would certainly hope so.”
But remember dudes, he’s a first time offender. Next time he commits a terrorist act, I’m sure they’ll really throw the book at him. You betcha. Meanwhile, have fun in jail Sleiman. Don’t pick up dropped soap if you knowadamean ….
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