Former Asst.-Ch. Nisso Shaham was released from prison on Thursday evening after the High Court of Justice rejected the prosecution's appeal against his release.
Shaham was found guilty of indecency, sexual assault, fraud and breach of trust. His original sentence was set at 10 months, but the release committee ruled that he would be released early, and the decision was approved by the Nazareth District Court.
Shaham began his sentence in March. In July, the court appealed against the decision to release him early.
"Shaham is not deserving of an early release because the danger he poses still stands," the prosecution wrote. "Shaham didn't take responsibility for his actions and doesn't think he did anything wrong. Therefore, the committee's decision, in this case, is extremely flawed and requires legal intervention."
The court's 'outrageous' decision
"The court's decision is outrageous and won't help the public's trust in the system," said Na'amat Chairwoman Hagit Pe'er. "This is a sex offender who was treated lightly to begin with and was given a light punishment, and now he is getting another award through the shortening of his sentence. The High Court is sending a difficult message today to the victims."
"This is a sex offender who was treated lightly to begin with and was given a light punishment, and now he is getting another award through the shortening of his sentence. The High Court is sending a difficult message today to the victims."
Naamat Chairwoman Hagit Peer
The High Court rejected Shaham's appeal in November and ruled that he had had relations with eight junior policewomen and then made decisions about their positions.
How did he get such a light sentence?
The judge who sentenced him, Shmuel Melamed, explained that in his opinion, even though Shaham was only found guilty of one count of breach of trust, it was actually about eight different incidents and therefore were included under another count.
In 2018, Shaham was found guilty of indecency for kissing a policewoman, but he was acquitted of breach of trust. After the prosecution appealed, the ruling was overturned, and he was found guilty of sexual assault and breach of trust. The case was then returned to the Shalom Court for sentencing.