Nineteen-year-old white supremacist John Earnest was formally charged Monday with one count of murder and three counts of attempted murder in connection with the vicious shooting attack this past Sabbath on Congregation Chabad of Poway near San Diego, California.
Lori Gilbert-Kaye, 60, was murdered in the attack. Chabad-Lubavitch emissary and founder of the congregation, Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein was wounded, along with an eight-year-old girl and her 34-year-old uncle, both Israeli citizens from Sderot. The young girl had moved to California with her family to escape the incessant rocket attacks that were targeting her community — only to face an anti-Semitic gunman instead.
Earnest was also charged with an arson attack on a mosque in March, in nearby Escondido.
The charges are being classified as hate crimes.
Arraignment is set for Tuesday, according to the office of the District Attorney.