Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara Netanyahu stand next to the dedication plaque of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, after the dedication ceremony of the new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, May 14, 2018.. (photo credit: ILLUSTRATIVE/RONEN ZVULUN/REUTERS)
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The trial of Sara Netanyahu, wife of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is expected to begin after the holiday, roughly three years after the media reported that she had allegedly illegally used public funds for personal purposes.
“This is a serious case,” Jerusalem District Attorney Danni Whitman told The Jerusalem Post’s sister publication Maariv on Sunday. “The wife of the prime minister used her position to commit felonies and corrupted a high-ranking civil servant to carry out these crimes.”
The civil servant mentioned is Ezra Saidoff, who was deputy director for operations at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s home during the time of the alleged felonies.
Whitman additionally claimed that he is convinced Netanyahu “was aware of these actions and that there is a [valid] mental element in their being carried out.”
The mental element remark is referring to Israeli law, which allows for a unique defense in which the person being charged can claim, or have it claimed for them, that they lack the mental faculty to understand that their actions were wrong.
Far from pleading mental health issues, this defense is meant to be used in cases in which people might misuse funds or give out instructions they had no right to give in the first place without knowing they lacked such powers.
While it is a possible defense, it seems very unlikely that Netanyahu would allow herself to be presented in court as a person who is so unaware of their actions.
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Maariv contacted the lawyers who represent Netanyahu who appealed to the Attorney General arguing that by speaking to the media Whitman had “crossed the lines in an unacceptable manner” and that him doing so is a planned attempt to sway “public opinion and use his high position against [Netanyahu].”
Netanyahu is accused, among other things, of purchasing expensive meals that were delivered to the house used by the Prime Minister despite enjoying the services of a domestic cook at the expense of the state of Israel. Allegedly, these take out meals were paid for illegally from public funds to the tune of NIS 359,000.
Netanyahu stated in July that it is “shameful that the Israeli police are investigating the prime minister as to what he is eating. President Peres had a million times more food that was of better quality and tastier.”
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