Supreme Court Justice Khaled Kabub Orders Release of Man Accused of Illegal Gun Possession

Supreme Court Justice Khaled Kabub has ordered the release of a defendant accused of illegally possessing two handguns and ammunition, pending trial. The defendant had allegedly hidden the weapons in the homes of family members, one at his father's residence and the other in a safe at his grandmother's house.

The District Court had previously ordered the defendant held until the end of proceedings. However, following an appeal to the Supreme Court, Justice Kabub overturned this decision, ruling for release under alternative detention conditions.

In his reasoning, Justice Kabub stated that since the weapons were not carried by the appellant or found in public, but rather in a locked safe, and no evidence indicated an offensive purpose for their possession, it was not appropriate to summarily deny the possibility of achieving the detention's purpose through less restrictive means. He noted that the weapons were not on his person or in public, but in a locked safe in his grandmother's home, and there was no indication of an offensive purpose.

This decision comes amid a broader national effort by Israeli authorities, including the Knesset, police, and prosecution, to toughen penalties and detention for weapons offenses, which have been described as a plague on the streets. Legal commentator Avishai Grinzaig noted that Justice Kabub's rulings in weapons cases are seen as an outlier, as he repeatedly releases defendants accused of serious weapons offenses under alternative detention, using what are described as peculiar justifications.