UCLA hires LAPD Cmdr. Steve Lurie will lead a security overhaul following the violence of the protest

UCLA hired a 27-year LAPD veteran and chief executive officer to lead its eight-month-old Office of Campus Safety that was created after last spring’s violent massacre at a pro-Palestinian camp, which was among the university’s darkest chapters.

LAPD Cmdr. Steve Lurie, who previously ran the department’s West Bureau, will begin his role as vice chancellor in Feb. 1.

He will replace Rick Braziel, the former Sacramento police chief who was hired in May by then-Chancellor Gene Block to be the university’s chief security officer in a new role that includes work for the UCLA Police Department, Office of Emergency Management and other security programs. .

In announcing Lurie’s appointment on Friday, UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk said “Lurie’s record — combined with his leadership experience, first-hand knowledge of our campus and academic insight as a law professor — makes him uniquely qualified to lead UCLA’s efforts to strengthen and connect our campus security initiative.”

“He will take a community-based, collaborative approach to campus safety that reflects the diverse experiences and perspectives of those who call UCLA home,” said Frenk, who began his role this month. “Our goal is to ensure that our policies and procedures are not only efficient but also equitable, respecting the safety, rights and well-being of all Bruins.”

Lurie received an undergraduate anthropology degree from UCLA in 1994 and is a professor of criminal justice at USC. As a detective, he worked on domestic violence, robbery, sex crimes and murder. He also served on the police shooting investigation unit and was the department’s liaison to the LA Jewish community.

“I am honored and excited to return to my alma mater in this new role,” Lurie said in an interview.

“As a proud alum, I can see the impact my UCLA education has had on my professional and personal development… I look forward to spending my first 100 days on campus listening and learning more about the safety concerns of the Bruin community, such as a safe . ‘ the university is defined by much more than the absence of crime.”

LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell praised Lurie, saying the department “will miss Steve’s skills and dedication to the LAPD.” But we are happy that if he has to leave, he will continue to be a great partner at UCLA.”

Lurie will take over a campus security job that has been widely criticized since the spring, when a poorly coordinated response between UCLA Police, the LAPD, the California Highway Patrol and other law enforcement agencies led to hours-long delays as a mob attacked a pro-Palestinian camp overnight in April 30 and May 1. The report of the LAPD Commission on Police and the report of the Republican-led House education committee in the fall cites failure. to coordinate.

A November report from an outside policing firm hired by the University of California, 21st Century Policing Solutions, reached similar conclusions.

“Because there are no organized plans in place, UCLA’s management is involved in a chaotic process where they have to make difficult decisions … in the midst of continuous disruption, without clarifying who holds the final authority, without an understandable process of access. decisions, and especially lacks the ability to respond quickly to rapidly changing events and changing situations on campus,” the report said.

In his LAPD role, Lurie was heavily involved in responding to college protests. The LAPD Commission report quotes Lurie several times, saying he was informed at 5 a.m. on April 25 – by UCLA Police Chief John Thomas – that UCLA “may need some assistance as the day progresses” while tents went up in Royce Quad.

Reports and public records show that Lurie was also part of the LAPD’s response later this week, including reports that UCLA police were overwhelmed by protesters on the night of April 30 — though there were discrepancies between those reports and requests for police assistance. .

In creating a new campus security office last year, UCLA sought to better coordinate campus security to prevent similar incidents in the future.

When he started his job, Braziel assigned Thomas, who left the department in December. It is not clear whether Thomas was fired or resigned.

Braziel has also faced criticism as the university opens the fall quarter with an increase in security personnel that worries some students, faculty and staff, and new, widespread restrictions on protest.

Braziel, who lived in Sacramento and never moved to Los Angeles, was paid $52,000 a month. Lurie’s salary was not immediately disclosed by UCLA.

Times staff writer Libor Jany contributed to this report.