To: UC Santa Cruz Community
From: Mary Garcia, Interim Chief of Police
Re: UCSC Police Department investigating accidental discharge of rifle

At 6:05 a.m. today (June 22, 2021), a UC Santa Cruz police officer was on duty at the campus police department completing the daily patrol equipment check. This daily process includes a check of their vehicle and all assigned equipment.

The officer was in their assigned patrol vehicle in the process of inspecting their rifle as required by UC Santa Cruz Police Department policy 432.8 when they had an accidental discharge of the rifle in an upward direction inside the car. No one was injured; the vehicle sustained minor damage.  

Pursuant to UC Santa Cruz Police Department policy 313.7, the officer reported this incident to their supervisor. The UC Santa Cruz Police Department takes this matter seriously and a thorough confidential investigation is underway pursuant to the UC Santa Cruz Police Department Critical Incident Protocol policy 310.1.2.

UC Santa Cruz Police Department policies and training can be found on our department website.