The long-running saga of the son of an Israeli consulate accused of running over a police officer with his motorcycle nearly came to an end Wednesday when a judge was told the 19-year-old had met the terms of a settlement with the state and would leave for Israel later that evening.
Late last month, after writing a letter to wounded Sunny Isles Beach police officer Ruben Zamora filled with apologies and lessons learned, Avraham Gil told the court that after his “major wake-up call,” he had decided to actively serve in the Israeli military.
The state then agreed to an unusually light sentence: no jail time if Gil took a traffic course, performed 100 hours of community service, promised not to drive and donated $500 to the Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
After learning on Wednesday that he had met the requirements, Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Teresa Pooler sent Gil packing. His attorney, Stephen Millan, told the judge that the family’s visas would expire at the end of the month and that they would return to Israel after the hearing.
Gil and his father Eli Gil, consul of the Israeli Consulate for Administration in Miami, quickly left the courtroom without comment.
Teenager hits officer with his motorcycle
According to the policeIt was late afternoon on January 27th when Sunny Isles Beach police officer Lt. Zamora exited his patrol car and walked along Collins Avenue and 174th Street. The officer claimed he saw Gil driving a black 2018 Suzuki through traffic and signaled and yelled at him to stop.
The teen ignored commands, Zamora said, and punched the officer, who somehow managed to pull the teen to the ground. Zamora’s leg was injured, and Gil was arrested and initially charged with assault and resisting an officer.
Those charges were dropped. The charge of aggravated assault on a police officer — which carries a three-year prison sentence — remained.
The court rejected Gil’s attorneys’ claims of immunity, and despite additional claims that the teen’s arrest was mishandled, Gil reached a deal with prosecutors, met his demands and avoided jail time.
Neither Sunny Isles Beach police nor Zamora would comment Wednesday. The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s office did not immediately respond to the Herald’s request.
Previous incidents with the police
It also turned out that Gil’s confrontation with the Sunny Isles police officer in late January wasn’t his first run-in with the law. A month earlier, on New Year’s Eve, he was pulled over by a Miami Shores police officer, also for allegedly speeding and weaving in and out of traffic.
The officer said Gil had a cover over his diplomatic license plate that read “PLS CHASE.” The officer eventually let him go after learning of the teen’s father’s job at the Israeli Consulate General’s office in Miami. Earlier, Miami police said they also saw Gil speeding dangerously down Biscayne Boulevard. But they abandoned the chase as a precaution.
In the letter Gil wrote directly to Officer Zamora a few weeks ago, the teenager said he was sorry for any harm he may have caused, regretted his poor judgment, and asked for forgiveness.
“Please know that I am committed to making amends and moving forward in a positive direction,” Gil wrote. “Please pray for me.”