San Francisco synagogue shooter charged with hate crime: report

The man who fired blanks in a Russian Jewish synagogue and cultural center in San Francisco faces hate crime charges, reported The Daily Beast on Wednesday.

The man, who has been identified as 51-year-old Dmitri Mishin, carried out the attack last Friday. No one was hurt.

"Police believe Mishin had entered a theater only a few blocks away the day before," reported Alec Karam. "He faces two counts of threatening the right to exercise religion, six misdemeanors involving brandishing a replica firearm, as well as disturbing a religious meeting. He could face more than 10 years in prison if found guilty."

According to the original report, Jewish worshipers and community members at the center were not entirely sure what had just happened or whether it was a hate crime, and even debated over whether it was best to call the police because the shooter may simply have been suffering from mental illness rather than expressing hate. They ultimately decided not to call the police, but the matter ultimately was reported to them after news of the attack spread through the community, and Mishin was arrested soon after.

“This is another deplorable example where our Jewish community has been targeted for who they are and what they believe,” said District Attorney Brooke Jenkins. “There is no doubt that antisemitism is real and we must stand with our Jewish community against it.”

San Francisco has been rocked by hate crimes in the previous few years, many of which were against the Asian-American community. The meager pace of prosecutions of these crimes were a major reason for the recall of DA Chesa Boudin last year.