Shoham v. Islamic Republic of Iran
Civil Action No. 2012-0508
| D.D.C. | Jun 1, 2017Background
- On June 5, 2001 a rock thrown through the windshield of an Israeli car in the West Bank fatally struck infant Yehuda Shoham; his mother Batsheva (a U.S. citizen) witnessed the attack.
- Plaintiff sued Iran and Bank Saderat under the FSIA §1605A (state‑sponsored terrorism exception); defendants did not appear and defaults were entered.
- The Court held a two‑day evidentiary hearing and received testimony and documentary evidence linking Iran (and Hezbollah) to material support for Fatah/Tanzim and to financing/incitement (including via al‑Manar) during the Second Intifada.
- Court took judicial notice of prior D.D.C. FSIA findings (e.g., Peterson, Valore) establishing Iran’s role in creating/supporting Hezbollah and materially supporting terrorist groups.
- Plaintiff sought wrongful death, survival, assault, IIED/NIED, TVPA and punitive damages; the Court found some claims time‑barred but proceeded to evaluate liability under §1605A.
- The Court concluded the evidentiary record failed to prove substantive causation tying Iran/Bank Saderat’s material support to the specific June 5, 2001 rock‑throwing that killed Yehuda and therefore denied default judgment and dismissed the case with prejudice.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subject‑matter jurisdiction under FSIA §1605A (state‑sponsored terrorism) | Iran/Bank Saderat provided material support to Fatah/Tanzim/AAMB and al‑Manar, producing a reasonable connection to the June 5, 2001 extrajudicial killing of Yehuda Shoham | (No appearance) Sovereign immunity asserted by statute; Court must analyze jurisdiction sua sponte | Court found jurisdictional prerequisites satisfied (service, state‑sponsor designation, U.S. citizenship of Batsheva, reasonable connection for jurisdictional causation) and exercised jurisdiction. |
| Service and personal jurisdiction (§1608) | Service by diplomatic channels (Iran) and courier to Bank Saderat's Paris office complied with §1608; Bank Saderat is an instrumentality of Iran | (No appearance) | Court held service proper and that Iran exercises sufficient control over Bank Saderat to treat it as an instrumentality (personal jurisdiction established). |
| Causation and substantive liability under §1605A(c) | General evidence of Iran/Hezbollah funding, training, incitement (al‑Manar), and payments to Palestinian groups makes Iran/Bank Saderat liable for acts by Fatah/Tanzim including the June 5 attack | Defendants did not appear; Court nonetheless requires evidence satisfactory under §1608(e) to show material support caused the specific extrajudicial killing | Court held plaintiff met the lower jurisdictional nexus standard but failed to prove substantive causation (more likely than not) that Iran/Bank Saderat caused the specific rock‑throwing attack; default judgment denied. |
| Remedies, TVPA and timeliness | Seeks wrongful death, survival, assault, IIED/NIED, TVPA and punitive damages (incl. large punitive award) | — | Court found wrongful death timely but many claims time‑barred; TVPA cannot be asserted against foreign states/instrumentalities (Mohamad); because substantive causation failed, no damages awarded; case dismissed with prejudice. |
Key Cases Cited
- Rimkus v. Islamic Republic of Iran, 750 F. Supp. 2d 163 (D.D.C. 2010) (standard for evidentiary sufficiency and use of prior records in default FSIA proceedings)
- Valore v. Islamic Republic of Iran, 700 F. Supp. 2d 52 (D.D.C. 2010) (substantive and jurisdictional causation under §1605A and solatium/IIED framework)
- Peterson v. Islamic Republic of Iran, 264 F. Supp. 2d 46 (D.D.C. 2003) (Iran's material support for Hezbollah and related liability findings)
- Peterson v. Islamic Republic of Iran, 515 F. Supp. 2d 25 (D.D.C. 2007) (follow‑up findings on Iran/Hezbollah support)
- In re Terrorism Litigation, 659 F. Supp. 2d 31 (D.D.C. 2009) (material‑support causation principles in terrorism cases)
- Kilburn v. Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, 376 F.3d 1123 (D.C. Cir. 2004) (proximate/"reasonable connection" standard for jurisdictional causation under state‑sponsored terrorism exception)
- Mohamad v. Palestinian Authority, 566 U.S. 449 (U.S. 2012) (TVPA applies only to natural persons, not organizational entities)
- Salazar v. Islamic Republic of Iran, 370 F. Supp. 2d 105 (D.D.C. 2005) (burden to prove consequences were reasonably certain and damages estimated reasonably in FSIA cases)