PHOENIX, AZ (April 15, 2011) – Judge Roland J. Steinle today sentenced Faleh Hassan Almaleki (DOB 1/1/1961) to serve 34½ years in the Arizona Department of Corrections for killing his daughter, Noor Almaleki, and seriously injuring Amal Edan Khalaf after striking both victims with his car. Almaleki was convicted on February 23rd on one count of second degree murder, one count of aggravated assault, and two counts of leaving the scene of a serious injury accident.
“The killing of one’s own child is more than just a violation of the law. It is an offense against parenthood itself and the awesome responsibility parents have for nurturing and protecting their children. While no sentence can ever restore Noor Almaleki’s promising young life, I commend Judge Steinle and the jurors in this case for holding her father accountable for his brutal and shocking crime,” said Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery. “Dishonor, disrespect and other cultural mores can never serve as a justification for the taking of an innocent life. Mr. Almaleki will have an appropriately long time in prison to ponder this truth,” he added.
On October 20, 2009, Faleh Hassan Almaleki, angered by his daughter Noor’s refusal to agree to an arranged marriage, intentionally struck her and her boyfriend’s mother, Amal Edan Khalaf, with his Jeep in a parking lot. He fled the scene and the country and was subsequently apprehended in England. Noor remained in a coma for two weeks and then died. Khalaf suffered serious injuries.
The jury found the aggravating factor of multiple victims on the second degree murder charge, and the aggravating factors of multiple victims, serious physical injury and emotional, financial and physical harm on the aggravated assault charge. Judge Steinle sentenced Almaleki to 16 years on the second degree murder charge to be served consecutively with a 15 year sentence on the aggravated assault charge and two concurrent 3½ year terms on each of the counts of leaving the scene of the accident.
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