An antisemitic terrorist attack took place at the Tree of Life – Or L’Simcha Congregation synagogue in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on October 27, 2019. The congregation, along with New Light Congregation and Congregation Dor Hadash, which also worshipped in the building, was attacked during Shabbat morning services. The perpetrator was armed with a Colt AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and three Glock .357 SIG semi-automatic pistols. According to authorities, all four weapons were fired, killing eleven people and wounding six, including several Holocaust survivors.
Those killed were:
• Joyce Fienberg (75)
• Richard Gottfired (65)
• Rose Mallinger (97)
• Jerry Rabinowitz (66)
• Cecil Rosenthal (59)
• David Rosenthal (54)
• Bernice Simon (84)
• Sylvan Simon (86)
• Daniel Stein (71)
• Melvin Wax (88)
• Irving Younger (69)
Seven others injured in the incident included three other congregants and four Pittsburgh officers (two patrol officers and two SWAT officers; three by ricocheted gunfire and another by glass fragments).
On October 31, the perpetrator was indicted on 44 counts by a federal grand jury. The charges carry a maximum penalty of death or 535 years in federal prison. The counts included hate crimes, 11 counts of obstruction of exercise of religious beliefs resulting in death, 11 counts of use of a firearm to commit murder during a crime of violence, four counts of obstruction of exercise of religious beliefs resulting in bodily injury to a public safety officer, and three counts of use and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence.
On January 29, 2019, the grand jury indicted the shooter on an additional 19 counts, 13 of which were for hate crimes. Federal prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
By October 2020, the perpetrator was seeking a plea deal. In January 2022, he sought a change of venue.
In June 2022, a U.S. District Judge said he anticipated the perpetrator’s trial would take place in 2023, most likely between April and June.
The perpetrator was also charged with 36 state criminal counts, including 11 counts of criminal homicide, six counts of aggravated assault, six counts of attempted criminal homicide, and 13 counts of ethnic intimidation. The state charges are held in abeyance pending the federal trial.