Left to right: The injured leg of a Sunny Isles, Florida police officer who prosecutors allege was “intentionally” run over in January 2024 by Avraham Gil, center. Booking photo Miami Dade Corrections. Right: Motorcycle in the crash provided to press by Sunny Isles Beach Police.
The son of an Israeli consulate official who prosecutors said intentionally ran over a police officer in Florida earlier this year, causing that officer “incapacitating injuries,” may soon see his criminal record wiped.
As Law&Crime previously reported, Avraham Gil was pulled over on Jan. 27 as a Sunny Isles police officer conducting a routine traffic stop on a busy road commanded him to stop after the officer witnessed Gil quickly weaving in and out of traffic.
Instead of slowing down, it was alleged that Gil kept going forward and ran over the officer’s left leg. The quick-reacting cop was able to grab Gil off his bike a moment later and get him to the ground. Dashcam footage from the incident showed Gil telling police he was “sorry” for what happened and an arrest affidavit noted that when interviewed, he told police he was speeding through cars because he hated waiting for traffic.
An attorney for Gil, Stephan Millan, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday but it was reported by Miami NBC affiliate WTVJ that state attorneys offered what is known as a pretrial diversion program to Gil this week that would see him avoid prison time.
The outlet reported that when Gil recently appeared in court, Judge Teresa Pooler told him if he managed to complete the diversion program, the state would agree to drop all charges currently against him. Public court records show Gil was first charged with three felonies after his arrest: battery of a law enforcement officer, resisting an officer with violence and aggravated assault of a law enforcement officer.
Prosecutors ultimately opted against pursuing the resisting arrest or battery charge, meaning that only the aggravated assault charge still remains. It is unclear why they did not pursue those charges.
The pretrial diversion program requires that Gil perform 100 hours of community service, attend traffic school, donate $500 to the Ryder Trauma Center and agree to a “no-driving” order though it is unclear for how long that order is in effect.
WTVJ reported that Gil has until July 24 to complete the program.
His parents’ diplomatic and consular visa reportedly expires July 1 and that is when they are expected to depart the U.S. Gil’s attorneys said he has nowhere else to go without them here.
In February when Gil appeared in court, his attorney argued that the teen had consular immunity because his father, Eli Gil, works at the Israeli consulate’s office in downtown Miami.
But when the State Department learned of the charges, it issued a statement saying that a dependent of an Israeli consular officer is not entitled to civil or criminal immunity because there is a difference between a diplomat and a consulate official.
The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office said it decided to go ahead with charging Gil after it consulted with the State Department and Office of Foreign Missions and learned that neither Avraham Gil or his father Eli Gil had diplomatic immunity.
The decision to prosecute Gil would be left up to how treaties for diplomats and their families were interpreted, Melba Pearson, a former criminal attorney, told Law&Crime earlier this year. Pearson noted that even for diplomats, immunity is not necessarily a given. Their rank and hierarchy plays a critical role in how immunity may or may not function. As Pearson explained, immunity for diplomats can vary too based on how long a person is in the U.S. Age is also a factor; so too is marriage status and even enrollment in college.
The incident with the Sunny Isles officer was not Gil’s first experience with Florida police.
On New Year’s Eve 2023, Miami Shores Police pulled Gil over for speeding and making an illegal turn, WPLG reported. Dashcam footage showed Gil asking if he could call his father and as The New York Post also noted, his motorcycle had a vanity license plate that read, “PLS CHASE” that was concealed by a second plate that flipped over it.
Meanwhile this week, Gil offered ‘heartfelt” apologies to the officer he injured in a lengthy letter.
“Since this incident, I have been reflecting on my life, the decisions I make and the consequences of those decisions. Every day, I think about what happened to the both of us,” he wrote, adding that he had “profound gratitude” for the service police provide.
To get himself on the straight and narrow and away from “negative influences,” Gil said he will join the Israel Defense Forces.
“Prior to this incident, I was going to serve in an administrative social service government post. Now I have chosen to serve in the active military,” he wrote.
Notably, it was reported by WPLG this February that when Gil went to the jail in Miami-Dade County to have his booking photo retaken after being placed on house arrest for the Sunny Isles incident — he was sobbing in the first photo — he ended up being beaten up by another inmate who shared his holding cell.
Initial booking photo for Avraham Gil in January 2024. Sunny Isles Police Department.
Gil told investigators the beating was prompted during “a conversation” with his alleged assailant about “the ingredients of the sausages.”
“At some point, the defendant approached [Gil] and punched him multiple times,” police said.
If Gil would have been charged and convicted of all three felonies and chosen to go to trial, he may have faced serious jail time but as Pearson anticipated earlier this year, it seemed more than likely that Gil would strike a deal.
Pearson told Law&Crime the aggravated battery charge is usually a second-degree felony with a maximum of 15 years in prison but because a police officer was involved, it was elevated to a first-degree felony making the maximum sentence 30 years. The resisting officer charge carried a maximum five year sentence.
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