DETROIT — A Wayne County court sentenced a Detroit man to 7 to 15 years in prison for attempting to kill a then-7-year-old Yemeni American child in a Detroit park on October 8, 2024.

Gary Lansky, 74, pleaded guilty last month to attempted murder but claimed he suffers from mental illness, a factor that led to a reduced sentence.

During the sentencing hearing held on December 11, the victim, Saida Mashrah, now 8, showed remarkable courage by confronting her attacker in the courtroom. Speaking to Judge Charise Anderson in a soft, trembling voice while wiping away tears, the child described her ongoing fear of being killed whenever she leaves her home.

“I would just like to express how deeply sorry I am to the family for what I did,” Lansky said when Judge Anderson asked if he wished to make a statement before sentencing

In a separate civil lawsuit, the Mashrah family is seeking up to $50 million in damages from Lansky for psychological trauma and serious injuries. The lawsuit stems from Lansky placing a knife against Saida’s neck before she managed to escape. The attack occurred while she was playing with other children at Ryan Park in the Warrendale neighborhood of west Detroit, near the Dearborn city border.

Convicted assailant Gary Lansky during the hearing.

According to the civil complaint filed by attorney Nabih Ayad, Lansky approached the minor without any provocation, lifted her chin and slashed her throat with a pocketknife he was carrying, then attempted to stab her. Saida bravely kicked him away and escaped.

She ran toward her nearby home, while Lansky then lunged at her grandmother, who was wearing a hijab. He fled the scene shortly afterward as bystanders and park visitors screamed.

Detroit police arrested Lansky later that same day without resistance.

Ayad and the Arab American Civil Rights League (ACRL) called for the attack to be treated as a hate crime, noting that Saida and her grandmother were the only Muslims in the park, which was crowded with Black families and children. However, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office said there was insufficient evidence to charge Lansky with a hate crime, particularly since he had attempted to stab his wife and sister-in-law just days before the park attack.

In exchange for his guilty plea, Lansky reached a plea agreement with prosecutors in both cases. He was sentenced to one to four years in prison for felony assault against his wife and sister-in-law, to be served concurrently with the sentence in Saida’s case. As a result, he could be released in approximately six years, factoring in time already served since his arrest in October 2024.

Ayad said he feels the prison sentence wasn’t enough.

“Would like to have seen a larger sentence on this individual,” he said. “Regardless of his mental health or non-mental health, the fact is anyone that can do that to a little child should never be out in the public.”

Ayad said he and Saida’s family are now talking with state lawmakers to create “Saida’s Law”, which would install cameras at playgrounds across the state.

The civil lawsuit against Lansky remains pending. Ayad is seeking up to $50 million in compensation for the physical injuries, psychological trauma and lasting harm suffered by Saida and her family.

“We don’t know what kinds of assets Lansky may have,” Ayad said, “but I assure you we intend to take every last dollar he owns. This person deserves to rot in hell and rot in prison.”

“No child should ever be afraid to play in a public park,” Ayad had said in a previous statement. “This lawsuit is about justice, dignity and the right of Arab and Muslim families to live safely in public spaces.”