‘Institutional paralysis’: Independent report says UCLA was unprepared for protest violence this spring

UCLA's administration suffered from "institutional paralysis" and "an inability to effectively respond and protect students from violence" when protesters clashed on campus this spring, according to a scathing independent report .

The report, conducted by 21st Century Policing Solutions , comes months after violence erupted outside a pro-Palestinian encampment on UCLA's campus. The consulting company reviewed thousands of documents and interviewed several current and former UCLA administrators, faculty, staff, students and law enforcement personnel.

Administration failed to prepare for the encampment to be formed, and for the ensuing violence, despite seeing similar events occur at other universities around the country. The lack of a plan made decision-making times "chaotic," the report says, as it wasn't clear who on campus held the authority to make difficult choices.

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This led to the lack of ability to react quickly to rapidly changing events, like when pro-Israeli counterprotesters arrived on the night of April 30.

Members of law enforcement agencies told the investigators that it felt like nobody was in charge on that night, despite the fact that the UCLA Police Department responded as violence erupted.

This forced officers with the Los Angeles Police Department and California Highway Patrol to take charge of the violent event, despite not being properly briefed on the nature of the protests and the geography of campus.

"Because UCLA PD did not provide this critical information, these outside law enforcement agencies decided amongst themselves how to engage," the report reads. "That is not how the operation should have functioned."

Now several months removed from the violence, UCLA and UCLA PD should develop a systematic plan in the short and intermediate term before more chaotic events occur, the report says. Recommendations include maintaining a clear and direct chain of command when it comes to decision-making and a training program to instruct officers on how to act in extreme circumstances.

The University of California issued a response to the report on Thursday, saying that it is taking a "close, detailed look" at where administrators fell short in the response to the violence.

"Last spring, as conflict spread at universities across the country, we saw the limits of our traditional approach. We are taking a close, detailed look at where we fell short and how we can do better moving forward. This comprehensive review and these recommendations will help ensure that we have actionable plans and policies in place to prevent similar events from happening again," said University of California President Michael V. Drake.

In May, UCLA appointed the former Sacramento Chief of Police to lead the new Office of Campus Safety in response to the protests.