Judge Loses Patience as Suspect in Shocking Bnei Brak Murder Still Has Not Been Examined

The judge has ordered four times that the suspect in the murder at the Chazon Ish study hall in Bnei Brak be transferred for a psychiatric examination, but the district psychiatrist has repeatedly refused to carry out the decision. The police have completed the murder investigation, and an indictment is expected against the suspect in the coming days.

A rare and ongoing confrontation is unfolding in the case of the shocking murder at the Chazon Ish study hall in Bnei Brak. Journalist Tuviya Yagelnik of Army Radio revealed today, Wednesday, that the judge issued four separate decisions ordering the suspect to be transferred for a psychiatric examination under hospitalization conditions, and none of them was carried out.

According to the report, as early as June 3 the judge ordered that the suspect be urgently transferred for a psychiatric examination under hospitalization conditions, in order to determine his mental state and his fitness to stand trial. However, the district psychiatrist refused to carry out the order, arguing that he could not conduct a substantive examination at the current stage of the legal proceedings.

The next day, on June 4, a second, explicit order was issued by the court. In that decision, it was made clear in no uncertain terms that the examination could and must be carried out at this stage, and that the district psychiatrist was required to take custody of the suspect and carry out the examination before the start of Shabbat. But this clear instruction also met with a complete refusal, and the judicial decision remained only on paper.

On Sunday, June 7, the confrontation reached a new peak when the court ordered for a third time that the suspect be transferred for an examination under hospitalization conditions. This time, given the stalemate, the judge formally turned to the Israel Prison Service and demanded an explanation and clarification as to why the medical examination that had been set had not yet been carried out, and who was delaying its implementation.

Today, Wednesday, it became clear that despite all the warnings and previous decisions, the district psychiatrist again did not comply with the order. As a result, the judge issued a particularly sharp and forceful decision today, ordering that the suspect be transferred for a psychiatric examination, as far as possible, later today, noting explicitly that this was done after previous decisions to transfer the suspect to a psychiatrist had not been carried out.

In an unusual step, the judge added a line in bold, enlarged print at the bottom of her decision, directed specifically at the district psychiatrist. The note read: "Attention of the district psychiatrist to the decision of Hon. Judge Blikstein from 4.6.2026, which refers to decisions of the District Court ordering that even in this proceeding it is possible to begin conducting a fitness examination."

As recalled, about three weeks ago the shocking murder took place at the Chazon Ish study hall in Bnei Brak, when the suspect attacked and murdered a yeshiva student while he was studying Torah. מאז the terrible act, a complex legal process has been underway in the suspect’s case, with the decisive question at its center, whether he is fit to stand trial.

According to reports, the suspect has an apparent psychiatric background, and the psychiatric examination is expected to determine decisively whether he was responsible for his actions when the murder was committed. That question is critical to the continuation of the legal proceedings and to determining the suspect’s criminal responsibility.

Meanwhile, the suspect’s detention has been extended repeatedly, as the court waits for the comprehensive psychiatric examination that will allow the proceedings to continue. The ongoing confrontation between the judge and the district psychiatrist is delaying the proceedings and raising serious questions about cooperation between the judicial system and medical authorities.