University PD assists off-campus

By Bradley Hart
The Collegian

Fresno State University Police officers frequently leave campus to assist other departments in the nearby area, according to the law enforcement organization’s chief.

Fresno State University Police Chief David Huerta said his department has an agreement with other regional agencies to assist in operations when requested or required.

“We would go off campus any time they requested it,” Huerta said.

Huerta said the department’s 18 sworn officers frequently leave the Fresno State campus to help with calls in the community, including nearby neighborhoods and fraternity houses adjacent to the university.

“It’s not a mutual aid policy [with the other organizations], it’s a general agreement that we will always assist one another,” Huerta said.

Huerta said because his officers are employed by the State of California, they have jurisdiction to operate anywhere within its borders.

The University PD has taken part in several recent high-profile law enforcement actions in the Fresno area.

The department took a key role in the Aug. 29 manhunt for two men accused of trying to rob a Clovis bank who led officers from numerous law enforcement organizations on a chase that included Barstow Avenue. on the north side of the Fresno State campus.

University Police took part in the initial chase of the suspects and also contributed to the multiple-hour searches for the suspects.

The fleeing suspects fired several shots during the chase through the Fresno State campus and nearly hit a pedestrian before crashing their car and fleeing into the Cedar Tree Apartments adjacent to the university, police said. Both men sought by police were arrested later in the day.

More recently, University Police officers were among those who responded to an Oct. 20 shooting at Shaw and Brawley Avenues. in Fresno.

According to The Fresno Bee, Fresno Police sent two officers to the home of James George Lunsford in northwest Fresno in response to a 911 call placed by the 25-year-old early in the morning hours.

When the officers arrived at the home, Lunsford opened fire on them from an upstairs balcony, wounding both.

The call of “officer down” from the Fresno Police Department was relayed to all law enforcement organizations in the area, including the University Police.

Huerta said his officers immediately drove to the scene of the shooting after the “officer down” call was received by dispatch.

“There was a period of a couple hours where we were involved in assisting the Fresno Police department, as was everyone else,” Huerta said.

The ensuing standoff between Lunsford and police ended about seven hours after the ambush when officers entering Lunsford’s house found him dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

In the meantime, Huerta said, the department kept an officer on the Fresno State campus to deal with calls in the area.

Huerta said his department’s practice of assisting other law enforcement organizations is not formally set as a policy and is dependant on the circumstances of the case as well as the department’s capability and staffing at the time.

But at the same time, he said, the police department offers any assistance it can to its fellow officers in other agencies.

“We have to be there for each other, period,” Huerta said. “It’s that simple.”

At the same time, he added, “we always make sure there’s somebody here.”

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