By JESSICA ANDERSON
A few months ago, I shared with you that Adam Edward Braun pleaded guilty to targeting the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue in Eugene in late 2023 and early 2024. His charges were three misdemeanor counts of damaging religious property for intentionally defacing the synagogue with white supremacist and antisemitic graffiti. The Oregonian carried the story, and some of the information below is derived from that report. 
His sentencing was this past week, and he was given four years of probation.  U.S. District Court Judge Mustafa Kasubhai said he was disappointed that more serious charges were not brought against Braun by the government. While the sentence might seem light, Kasubhai chose it carefully so that Braun would have the maximum amount of monitoring. Braun had already spent over 11 months in custody while his case was moving through the system. If Kasubhai accepted the 1.5-year recommended prison sentence, Braun’s 11 months in pre-trial custody would have been credited to him, and he would have only received one year of probation. By choosing an alternate sentence, Kasubhai ensured that Braun would continue to be monitored for another four years. 
The Oregonian noted, “Braun provided a statement at the hearing, saying he wanted to ‘formally apologize to the congregants of Beth Israel‘ and ’especially to the children of the congregation,’ who ’don’t need to be terrorized by anybody’s religious or political animosity’He said he’s reflected on his actions, has read a few books written by Jewish people who suffered from persecution, and has put effort into having ‘friendly relations‘ with members of Black, Indigenous, and LGBTQ+ communities, as well as ’one man who was raised in a Hasidic Jewish household.’ Braun said being held behind bars made him realize that what he did wasn’t worth it. ’I have had a hard dose of reality. If I want to live a productive and successful life, then going and tagging walls on religious buildings is not going to get me there,’ he said.”
I maintain that it’s still relatively rare for someone to move from hatred in their thoughts to criminal activity, and I’m glad to see when the court system successfully works to hold those who do accountable. This is not always the case, particularly when issues of mental fitness are present (which we’ve also seen in this community). The judge was not particularly swayed by Braun’s statement of contrition and doubted that Braun had actually changed his mind about his dislike for Jews - expressed by his actions at Eugene’s Beth Israel, antisemitic tropes stated following his arrest, possession of Nazi paraphernalia, and doubting the Holocaust. Is it enough that he’s realized his actions were incompatible with his desire to live the life he wants to? If what he experienced keeps Braun from acting again, no matter what is in his heart, that’s a good thing. I appreciated Judge Kasubhai telling him, “You fell below the expectations of our society.” We don’t all have to have the same beliefs, but we’ve got to be able to hold our “s---” together. Time will tell if Braun can hold his life together, and hopefully, we never hear of him again. 
One of the big success stories connected to this is the use of cameras. During one of his visits to Beth Israel, Braun raises a hammer and notices the camera. Instead of smashing the glass doors, he rants and leaves graffiti. 
These photos allowed investigators to identify Braun and connect him with multiple crimes. While cameras are often most useful following an incident by providing important evidence, they can be successful deterrents in real time. 
Federal Nonprofit Security Grant (NSGP) funds contributed to Beth Israel’s having a quality, integrated camera system. SCN and other NSGP advocates look for success stories like this, where NSGP funds have created positive investigative outcomes that can be shared with Congress. It can be hard to prove a negative—how do you demonstrate that your security additions prevented something? Finding these stories may be extra important in the coming years when federal funding for these grants might require additional advocacy. Stories are being collected by SCN at this link: https://securecommunitynetwork.jotform.com/243305142418044, or you can share them with me at janderson@securecommunitynetwork.org.
Recent incidents include:
- On Feb. 12, a Portland organizational staff member received a call from an identified person in Dallas, OR, who began a nonsensical rant about how “you people” leave trash everywhere in the community and leave it to everyone else to clean up. She then went on to slur a marginalized community in the name of Jesus Christ and hung up.
- On Feb. 11, a “Love” plus the image of a Nazi swastika was found on a lamp post at the Portland Transit Center. 
Please report incidents via my email at janderson@securecommunitynetwork.org or through the incident reporting form on the JFGP security web page at https://www.jewishportland.org/security.