The man who repeatedly rammed a car into the Chabad Hasidic movement’s world headquarters earlier this year is sentenced to time served.
Dan Sohail, 36, pleaded guilty to damaging religious property in May.
Sohail slammed his car into the revered religious site in January, causing widespread alarm.
He was initially charged with a hate crime, but later told investigators that he was seeking to connect with his “Jewish heritage.”
An investigation found that Sohail had made outreach to Jewish groups ahead of the incident and had mental health problems.
The judge in the case says Sohail needs mental health treatment and did not exhibit any hatred toward Jews.
Sohail is sentenced to time served. He has been incarcerated for six months and will be released next week.
The judge in the case, Eric Vitaliano, orders Sohail to pay $19,000 in restitution.
Vitaliano criticizes the Department of Justice for seeking a harsher sentence.
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