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Elias Rodriguez Indicted on Federal Hate Crime and Murder Charges With Death Penalty Eligibility

Securing convictions requires prosecutors to prove Rodriguez acted out of antisemitic bias instead of political opposition to Israel

People attend a candlelight vigil at Lafayette Square across from the White House in Washington, DC on May 22 outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC.
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FILE - Flowers and mementos are left by visitors outside the Capital Jewish Museum after two Israeli Embassy staff members were killed following an event at the museum, Thursday, May 29, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
A photograph of Sarah Lynn Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky is displayed outside the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, on May 29, 2025.

Overview

  • A Washington federal grand jury returned a nine-count indictment against Elias Rodriguez including premeditated murder, killing foreign officials, discharging a firearm in a crime of violence and a hate crime resulting in death.
  • Special findings in the indictment authorize the Justice Department to seek the death penalty if prosecutors establish that antisemitic bias motivated the killings.
  • Prosecutors must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Rodriguez targeted the victims for their Jewish identity rather than opposition to Israeli policy.
  • Victims Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Milgrim, 26, were shot and killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum on May 21 after attending an event hosted by the American Jewish Committee.
  • The case highlights the Justice Department’s aggressive approach of pairing federal hate crime statutes with capital punishment authorities to address bias-driven violence.