A Ventura County man pled not guilty to charges in connection with the death of a Jewish protester during competing demonstrations in Thousand Oaks.
Loay Alnaji entered the not guilty pleas to involuntary manslaughter and felony battery charges stemming from the incident last November.
Alnaji was part of a pro-Palestinian demonstration on Thousand Oaks Boulevard. Prosecutors say he and pro-Israeli protester Paul Kessler got intro a confrontation, and Alnaji hit him with a megaphone. Kessler fell backwards and struck his head on the ground. He died a short time later at a hospital. The incident made international headlines.
Alnaji is free on bail. The college professor from Moorpark is set to appear in court next in September for a pretrial conference.
