after hearing the Prosecutor’s demand of 13 years in prison for Israel Paesch, defense attorney mr. Arendsz Marchena presented her defense and argued that her client Israel acted in self-defense.
It was understood that attorney mr. Arendsz Marchena believes that due to years of threats and abuse, Israel was under severe anguish and shot his cousin Rene Paesch to death when Rene threatened to kill him.
Shot in self-defense
Mr. Arendsz Marchena told the Judge that Israel Paesch (40) deeply regrets the death of Rene and its impact on the family. The lawyer argues that Israel is not guilty, as he acted in self-defense and cannot be held accountable for his actions.
In the opinion of mr. Arendsz Marchena, the case on August 23, 2025, was the culmination of the terrorization, anguish, and threats inflicted by Rene upon Israel. The attorney pointed out that a witness declared the conflict had started 8 years ago. The situation escalated when Rene burned Israel’s boat. Another witness stated that Israel was assaulted at a restaurant. Yet another witness mentioned that a few months prior, Israel was assaulted so severely that he had to go to the hospital for treatment. Additional witnesses stated that Rene would go to Israel’s house to cause trouble and make threats.
Defendant was severely assaulted
The attorney pointed out that on August 23, 2025, the deceased, Rene, severely assaulted Israel outside of Lekker Bar. Furthermore, Israel feared that Rene was going to shoot him dead.
The lawyer told the Judge that the Prosecutor misinterpreted Rene’s expression toward Israel. She pointed out that the Prosecutor interpreted the Papiamento expression “mata mi no” as “do not kill me.” The attorney clarified to the Judge that Rene’s expression was actually a dare, challenging Israel to shoot him.
Israel could not take it anymore
The defense attorney stated that Israel shot Rene out of anguish. Afterward, Israel fought with Rene until Rene stopped moving. In the lawyer’s opinion, this was the product of the immense distress Israel was experiencing, reaching a point where he could no longer take it.
The attorney stated that Rene had gone to Israel’s house to settle a score with him. In the lawyer’s opinion, Israel was panicking in a life-or-death situation to survive Rene, who had expressed that he was going to kill him. The attorney pointed out that both the psychologist and psychiatrist indicated that Israel was less accountable for his actions. The lawyer believes that the fact that Rene told Israel he was going to kill him caused Israel to act in self-defense. She showed that for years, Rene would drive past Israel’s house, causing panic. According to the lawyer, Israel fired without even knowing how many shots he discharged. All of this indicates that Israel was in a life-or-death situation and fired in self-defense out of anguish. The attorney believes that Israel could not have done anything else due to the extreme distress caused by Rene.
She pointed out that for 8 years, Rene had been threatening and terrorizing Israel. The lawyer told the Judge that there are three situations proving Israel acted in self-defense and was less accountable for his actions. According to the attorney, Israel is only responsible for possessing a firearm, and is not responsible for the drugs found in the apartment at his house. The lawyer believes the Judge should declare the damages claim inadmissible because the damages were not sufficiently justified.
The Judge, after hearing the responses from both the Prosecutor and the defense lawyer, announced that the verdict will be delivered on July 10, 2026.