Watchdog Complains Against Judge Over Sabbath Ruling

The Israeli group Emet Le’Yaakov in Israel has filed a sharp complaint to the Ombudsman for Complaints Against Judges against Judge Michael Kranshen of the Lod District Court, accusing him of issuing a ruling on Shabbat without legal justification. The filing says Kranshen decided on a petition while Shabbat was still in effect, about an hour and a half before it ended on Saturday, 7 Sivan 5786.

The case involved an administrative petition submitted by Elad city council member Yitzhak Hala against the Elad municipality, with claims of a lack of transparency and poor governance. The organization says the matter was purely administrative and did not involve pikuach nefesh, nor any “serious irreparable harm,” so there was no basis to act during Shabbat.

According to the complaint, the court administration’s response, calling it “a technical decision in the case” and possibly the result of “lack of attention,” is unacceptable. Emet Le’Yaakov argues that a district judge should know when Shabbat begins and ends, and that “lack of attention” on such a matter requires investigation and practical consequences.

The group also says the incident came only weeks after Ombudsman Asher Kula issued a broad principle stating that intensive judicial activity on Shabbat, without a clear pikuach nefesh basis, is a serious defect in the conduct of proceedings. It further cites the need for real-time justification when a court does act on Shabbat, saying no such explanation appeared here because there was no valid reason. The organization asks Kula to investigate, seek Judge Kranshen’s response, impose appropriate sanctions, and issue a clear system-wide directive barring Shabbat rulings in cases that do not meet the strict conditions of Regulation 2(a) of the Emergency Relief Regulations.