On Thursday, June 12, at approximately 2:54 p.m., a man, identified as Joseph Amr Khairy Abdalla, was arrested outside the Lower School campus on charges of assault, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. This incident occurred as the school day ended and the carpool line started filling up. Off-duty Montgomery County police officers approached him after observing him driving outside the normal traffic pattern of the carpool line and into lanes with oncoming vehicles without a valid student pick-up pass.
After security approached him and asked him to identify himself and his relation to the school, Abdalla refused, prompting the police officers on-site to try to remove him from his vehicle. Abdalla became “combative,” according to the Montgomery County Police Report, resisting the officers’ commands. During the time that the police officers had to remove him from his car forcefully, Abdalla shouted antisemitic slurs towards the police officers, and a pocket knife fell out of his person.
According to an email sent by Malkus to the JDS community, the Lower School campus went under the shelter-in-place protocol as soon as the police officers on duty saw the suspicious behavior unfolding in the carpool line. The protocol ended approximately 20 minutes after the Montgomery County Police had detained Abdalla, and the carpool line proceeded as normal.
“Our security protocols were followed as intended. Police officers on site responded swiftly and appropriately, ensuring the safety of all students and staff,” Head of Security Herbert Epstein said in an email interview. “…Events like this highlight the importance of strong security measures and community awareness.”
Leah Tulin, the parent of a fourth-grade student, was walking out of the building with her husband when the alarm sounded in the school to the shelter-in-place protocol. Tulin had just attended an end-of-year ceremony, and her child was still in the building as she was walking out. When discussing the incident with her child later that evening, she said that her child was not fazed by the shelter-in-place but was aware that someone was arrested outside the school.
Tulin said that she did not see any children outside, but saw a lot of parents outside their cars, as many parents were leaving the end-of-school event. She said that there were a number of parents watching the incident unfold. As Tulin continued to walk out of the building, she saw Abdulla handcuffed to a police car, being handled by a few police officers nearby.
“The whole thing was unnerving and scary, but by the time we came out, we sort of walked by the police car and the suspect and the officers,” Tulin said. “When we walked by, and I could hear…[that he] was still very much agitated, calling the officers terrorists. He said something about the things that are happening in LA right now, I think directed at the police and or law enforcement in general.”
The off-duty officers working for JDS placed him under arrest and First District officers arrived on the site shortly after, taking Abdalla into custody and transporting him to Montgomery County Central Processing Unit. Abdalla was charged with multiple counts of assault, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, according to the Montgomery County Police Report. Epstein said that Abdalla remains in custody as of Saturday evening.
“I was so impressed and grateful for the fact that we have procedures in place, and people at the ready to make sure that our kids and that we stay safe,” Tulin said. “And I saw that unfolding, and that was part of what made me feel comfortable enough to know that my kid was still inside the school and I was going to drive away without them and feel like it was okay.”
Abdulla was a school vendor, working as an assistant karate instructor for the after-school karate club at the Lower School. Malkus said that Abdulla was employed by Kyle’s Karate and was terminated from his position after his arrest, in addition to being banned from the school, according to an article in the Washington Jewish Week.
Abdulla, as per school policy for all school vendors who come onto JDS campus, passed a background check conducted by the State of Maryland and the FBI. Malkus said that there was nothing on the background check that indicated that he was a threat to the school. While he had business being on campus due to his employment status, his refusal to identify himself and obey the officer’s commands was grounds for his arrest, according to Maryland state law.
Epstein said that in the future, the school will continue to have police and other security guards on duty. He added that the school is going to continue “to emphasize a proactive security approach that prioritizes readiness and prevention.” While there is no direct evidence that the attack was anti-Semitic or intended to harm anyone at the school, Malkus said that the school will continue to remain vigilant on security measures and protocol.
“The school takes the safety and security of the students, faculty and families as top priority, and we’re going to continue to have excellent security, and if that requires making enhancements in the future, we’ll do that,” Malkus said. “But we’re very aware of the general environment that exists and so right now we have a tremendous focus on security at the school.”
Malkus said that parents have expressed that they feel the school handled the incident appropriately. He also said that the community was “deeply appreciative of the officers and felt that they handled it very professionally.”
“I later saw the email that Kyle, the karate instructor, sent around to folks in that program… it was so beautiful,” Tulin said. “[It] really reinforced for me that as scary and unnerving as the whole situation was, I know that we have a really strong community that includes a lot of terrific people who are all trying to make sure that our kids stay safe, and I just appreciate that.”
