Man who ruined gay pride mural avoids jail sentence. ‘You did a bad thing but you’re not a bad person,’ judge says.

A man avoided doing jail time for ruining a mural that celebrated gay pride in Delray Beach — instead being ordered to do community service.

A Palm Beach County judge sentenced Alexander Jerich, 20, of Lake Worth Beach, to two years of probation, 100 hours of community service and a mandatory mental health screening. He avoided a felony conviction. The only jail time he faced was the night he spent in jail after turning himself in last year.

At Jerich’s last hearing in April, Judge Scott Suskauer ordered Jerich to write a 25-page essay on the victims of Pulse nightclub massacre and homophobia.

Alexander Jerich, 20, of Delray Beach, has been charged with criminal mischief over $1,000 and reckless driving. Jerich turned himself into police after allegedly defacing a gay pride intersection in Delray Beach. (Delray Beach Police Department/Courtesy)

Tuesday’s hearing was originally scheduled for Wednesday but was moved up last month. After the hearing, Jerich’s attorney declined to comment on the outcome.

The Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office had initially sought a sentence of 30 days in jail and five years of probation.

Alexander Jerich appears before Judge Scott Suskauer on Tuesday, June 7, 2022 at the West Palm Beach Courthouse. (Susan Stocker / South Florida Sun Sentinel)

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“Although we sought jail time in this case, we respect the court’s decision,” a spokesman for the office said. “This is Pride Month, and our office will always support the LGBTQ+ community and the enforcement of laws that protect against acts of prejudice. We hope the state Legislature will change the law to allow charging such acts as a hate crime in the future.”

Suskauer, in making his ruling, told Jerich, “You did a bad thing but you’re not a bad person.”

Rand Hoch, president and founder of Palm Beach County Human Rights Council, registered as a victim with the court, as his organization had paid for the streetscape to be painted.

Attorney Robert Pasch and his client Alexander Jerich (center) leave court on Tuesday June 7, 2022 at the West Palm Beach Courthouse. Jerich, who plead guilty to burning skid marks into an LGBTQ+ streetscape in Delray Beach, was sentenced to two years probation, one hundred hours of community service and a mental health evaluation. (Susan Stocker / South Florida Sun Sentinel)

Upon hearing the outcome of Tuesday’s hearing and Jerich’s sentence, Hoch asked: “That’s it?”

“Here’s a man that intentionally defaces a symbol of the LGBT community and the justice system fails us,” he said. “The judge could have done something to deter these crimes, and this guy gets a slap on the wrist.”

Austen Erblat can be reached at aerblat@sunsentinel.com, 954-599-8709 or on Twitter @AustenErblat.