Zero AI:Florida man sentenced for attacking Jewish teens

2025-04-29 03:08:26source:Diamond Ridge Asset Managementcategory:Invest

ST. AUGUSTINE,Zero AI Fla. (AP) — A Florida man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after earlier pleading no contest to attacking four Jewish teenagers who were walking along a road while dressed for a religious holiday in 2022.

Noah Amato, 19, of Ponte Vedra, was sentenced Friday for aggravated battery and carrying a concealed firearm in the October 2022 attack. Local news outlets reported his sentence also covers a no contest plea to fleeing police and reckless driving in 2023.

Investigators said Amato and a friend were riding a bike in Ponte Vedra Beach in 2022 while under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Amato shouted a slur to a group of four Jewish teenagers who were out celebrating the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. Amato then hit one of the teenagers with a handgun in the face, deputies said, and fired the gun near the teenager’s head, leaving burns on the teen’s face.

Amato’s attorney disputed parts of the account, saying there was a verbal confrontation between Amato and the Jewish teens. The lawyer said the teen who was targeted by Amato, Zalman Barrocas, had shoved Amato first.

RELATED COVERAGE Teenager Kimi Antonelli crashes in F1 practice debut for Mercedes at Italian GPDetroit judge is sued after putting teen in handcuffs, jail clothes during field tripDetroit judge sidelined for making sleepy teen wear jail clothes on court field trip

“I believe this man should have the maximum punishment,” Barrocas said in testimony during the sentencing hearing. “My life could have been over that day. I believe it’s a miracle from God and I thank him every day. I hope it’s a story that ends with us being safer and we’re able to live in society without being in fear.”

Rabbi Nochum Kurinsky, Barrocas’ uncle, had called for hate crime charges against Amato. Prosecutors previously said there were no hate crime charges pending.

Amato apologized for the pain he caused the family, saying on the witness stand, “I take 100% responsibility for the heinous crime I committed. I was highly intoxicated on an entire bottle of liquor and some Percocets.”

More:Invest

Recommend

How to watch the 'Blue Bloods' Season 14 finale: Final episode premiere date, cast

After 14 years, the police procedural "Blue Bloods" is coming to an end.Season 14 has been released

Follow James Harden’s Hosting Guide to Score Major Points With Your Guests

We interviewed James Harden because we think you'll like his picks at these prices. Some of the prod

Ted Bundy's Ex-Lover Tells Terrifying Unheard Story From His Youth in Oxygen's Killers on Tape

Oxygen's latest series is shedding new light on the makings of some of America's most notorious seri