Quick Take
Only one of 122 UC Santa Cruz protesters faces charges in connection with Gaza encampment arrests last year as the statute of limitations on prosecution expires.
After the one-year deadline expired for UC Santa Cruz police to bring charges against dozens of protesters arrested during a raid of a pro-Palestine encampment last year, just one student out of 122 is facing formal charges in Santa Cruz County Superior Court.
Campus police had one year from the time of the mass arrests last May 31 to formally submit charges to the Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s office for review. That statute of limitations expired on May 31 of this year.
One student was formally charged in March and has pleaded not guilty to the allegations, which include battery against a police officer, resisting arrest and providing false information, stemming from arrests at campus protests last May and October. A hearing is scheduled for the case Aug. 15.
The district attorney’s office reviewed three other cases that UCSC police submitted within the one-year period but declined to pursue them, as Lookout previously reported.
UCSC police didn’t forward any other cases to the DA’s office for review, meaning none of the other 121 people arrested on May 31, 2024, will be formally charged, the district attorney’s office confirmed Wednesday.
UCSC Police Chief Kevin Domby and UCSC spokesperson Scott Hernandez-Jason didn’t respond to requests for comment on why the school declined to pursue charges against most of the protesters arrested on campus.
During the Gaza solidarity encampment raid more than a year ago, police charged all 122 protesters with failure to disperse and several with resisting arrest and battery of an officer. Police later sent letters, dated Aug. 8, 2024, to the student protesters informing them of the one-year statute of limitations and that the “decision to pursue charges against you will rest with UCSC PD and will be influenced by any future unlawful conduct.”
Students told Lookout they believed the letters were an attempt to quell protests on campus as universities across the country, including the University of California, implemented policies against encampments and wearing masks during demonstrations.
About 10 months after the arrests, on March 7, the district attorney’s office filed formal charges against the single UCSC student.
The UCSC student was arrested first at the Gaza solidarity encampment last May and a second time on Oct. 7, 2024, after a rally in support of Palestine on campus. Bystanders who were at the October rally told Lookout that the student was approached by police after the event had ended. Officers told the student they couldn’t wear a mask and use a bullhorn and asked them to identify themselves. They are facing charges from both incidents.
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