Harvard Visiting Professor Arrested After Firing Pellet Gun Outside Synagogue on Yom Kippur

A Harvard Law School visiting professor was arrested earlier this month after allegedly discharging a pellet rifle outside a synagogue during Yom Kippur — the holiest day on the Jewish calendar — sparking national outrage and questions over Harvard’s response.

Carlos Portugal Gouvea, 43, was taken into custody by Brookline, Massachusetts police on the evening of October 1, after reportedly firing two rounds outside Temple Beth Zion just after 9:00 p.m., while Yom Kippur services were underway. Security guards stationed at the synagogue heard what they described as “two loud shots” and immediately spotted Gouvea holding the rifle.

When confronted, Gouvea initially placed the gun down, then suddenly lunged toward it before fleeing into his nearby home. Police arrested him moments later outside his residence. Officers also discovered a shattered car window with a pellet lodged inside, leading to multiple charges: illegal discharge of a firearm (pellet gun), disorderly conduct, disturbing the peace, and malicious destruction of property.

Gouvea pleaded not guilty at his arraignment and was released on personal recognizance pending a court hearing in November. He reportedly told police he had merely been “hunting rats.”

But the timing and location of the incident — near a synagogue as Jewish families observed Yom Kippur, a day marked by solemn prayer and heightened concern for safety — triggered immediate public backlash. Jewish organizations and social media watchdogs, including StopAntisemitism, condemned the incident as deeply alarming.

Adding fuel to the fire, critics unearthed a social media post from Gouvea on October 7, 2023 — the day of the brutal Hamas massacre in southern Israel — in which he flippantly wrote, “Rainy day, party time!” The tone of the post, juxtaposed with the violence of that day, only intensified concerns over Gouvea’s mindset and judgment.

Despite the arrest, Harvard Law School did not immediately suspend the professor. Only after public outcry erupted online did the school release a vague statement late Friday evening announcing Gouvea had been placed on administrative leave “as the school seeks to learn more about this matter.”

The delay provoked even more scrutiny — particularly toward The Harvard Crimson, the university’s student newspaper. Initially, The Crimson reported the story prominently, highlighting Harvard’s silence. But as outrage spread, the paper quietly edited its headline and opening paragraph to emphasize Gouvea’s administrative leave, rather than the fact that he had been arrested for firing near a synagogue during a sacred holiday.

Critics accused Harvard and The Crimson of soft-pedaling the incident and attempting to manage public perception rather than address the seriousness of the event. “They buried the lead,” one alum posted on X (formerly Twitter). “The man was arrested outside a synagogue on Yom Kippur and continued teaching at Harvard until people raised hell.”

Gouvea is a visiting professor at Harvard Law but serves full-time as an associate professor at the University of São Paulo in Brazil. He also runs a think tank focused on “social and environmental justice.”

The fact that a man with a history of controversial posts was permitted to continue lecturing future legal scholars — even after being arrested near a synagogue on one of the most solemn nights in Judaism — has ignited a broader debate about selective outrage, institutional accountability, and antisemitism on elite college campuses.

The incident comes amid heightened global concern over rising antisemitism, particularly on university campuses. For many, Harvard’s slow response and the shifting tone of its student paper were not just disappointing — they were emblematic of a deeper rot.