Campus Police Union Blames UCLA for Encampment Violence Response

‘[UCLA] administrators decide the objective, and campus police are only responsible for tactics in implementing those objectives,” the union’s president said.

A US Police officer stands guard in front of a banner reading "Hamas Free the Hostages" left by counter protesters at a pro-Palestinian encampment set up on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), after clashes erupted in Los Angeles on May 1, 2024. Etienne Laurent/AFP

The union that represents campus police officers at the 10 University of California schools is blaming UCLA administrators for the much-criticized response to violence that broke out at the Westwood campus this week.

Federated University Police Officer’s Association said May 4 that the upcoming probe by UC President Michael Drake into the university’s “planning, actions and response by law enforcement” must consider the university’s own guidelines for response to campus protests.