A South San Francisco man was sentenced to 30 days in jail for threatening to kill and charging pro-Palestine protesters at the South San Francisco library during an April 2024 protest, San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said.
The man, 58-year-old Kent Keenan, pleaded no contest to felony battery and admitted to a hate crime, Wagstaffe said. He will also be required to do 75 hours of public service and be placed on probation for two years.
The DA’s Office said Keenan yelled and spit on one victim at the April 10 protest before attempting to charge two other victims, a woman and her daughter. He also yelled “Death to all you Palestinians and your kids and the kids in Gaza. ... I’m going to kill you, b—, I’m going to kill all you Palestinians,” and “I’ll kill you, I want all your people dead, bomb Palestine,” according to the DA’s Office.
It was important that the hate crime allegation remained in Keenan’s charges, Wagstaffe said, as a reminder that threatening protesters is always unacceptable.
“We live in a day of protest of all sorts and types,” he said. “People who are exercising their valid First Amendment rights have to be free of any fear.”
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