Dear campus community:
I want to provide a quick update this morning on yesterday’s stabbing incident that injured four people and resulted in the death of the alleged student assailant.
Thankfully, all four injured parties, including two male students, a female employee and a male contract construction worker, are expected to recover fully from their wounds. As of this morning, one student remains hospitalized but is expected to recover, and the other student was treated and released. The staff member suffered a collapsed lung and was recovering after successful surgery. The construction worker was treated and released Wednesday. We can all be deeply thankful that none sustained life-threatening injuries.
The deceased student assailant has been identified as Faisal Mohammad, 18, a freshman from Santa Clara and a resident of Tuolumne Hall. We do not have any clear information as to the motive for his actions, which originated in a second-floor classroom of the Classroom and Office Building. We can be very thankful that campus police were able to respond quickly and stop him before he hurt anyone else. This was the kind of shocking incident that all of us have thought about and prepared for but never expected to happen on our campus.
I am proud of the way the campus has responded and grateful for the outpouring of support we’ve received from the community, local and state political leadership, other UC campuses and the Office of the President. It will take time to heal and fully understand what happened here, but I can already see our campus pulling together to support the victims, their friends and family, and anyone who witnessed yesterday’s unfolding tragedy. Thank you for your compassion and love during this time of grief and healing.
The campus—except for the Classroom and Office Building (COB)--will reopen today at 12:00 p.m. so that faculty and staff can access their offices to conduct crucial businesses. (Faculty members who must gain access to the COB today must request a police escort.) However, classes remain cancelled today and essential campus services (except for dining and recreation) will remain closed until tomorrow. Classes will resume tomorrow.
We will continue to offer counseling services. Related details will be forthcoming in a separate message.
We will keep you updated as new developments occur.
Official university updates can also be found on the campus website, our emergency website, Facebook and Twitter.
Sincerely,
Dorothy Leland, Chancellor
