UCLA temporarily reassigns police chief pending investigation into handling of anti-Israel protests

The University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) announced Wednesday that it was temporarily reassigning its police chief while it investigates his handling of a brawl around the encampment on the campus last month.

Violent protests broke out on the Bruins campus last month after counter-protesters got into a brawl with the anti-Israel demonstrators. The unrest captivated an area of the campus for hours before the university's law enforcement got involved. UCLA was just one of many college campuses that dealt with unlawful pro-Palestine encampments nationwide.

Mary Osako, UCLA's vice chancellor for Strategic Communications, did not state where police chief John Thomas was reassigned to, but said UCLA police captain Gawin Gibson has been placed as the interim chief in the meantime.

"John Thomas has been reassigned temporarily, pending an examination of our security processes," Osako said in a statement. "UCLA created a new Office of Campus Safety that is leading a thorough examination of our security processes aimed at enhancing the well-being and safety of our community.”

UCLA Chancellor Gene Bock is expected to testify in front of the House of Representatives on Thursday about his university's response to the antisemitic protests. He will be joined by university officials from Northwestern and Rutgers. Presidents of Harvard, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Columbia University have already testified to the House committee.

Thomas has faced calls for his resignation over a lack of a strong campus safety plan, which was demonstrated by his response to the protests, according to the Los Angeles Times.