An El Camino College police car parked outside of the Schauerman Library on Thursday, Feb. 27. (Eddy Cermeno | The Union)
A workplace threat involving potential physical harm was made by a male employee against other employees at El Camino College, according to campus police.
The threat was made at the Facilities and Receiving Building at 3 p.m. Thursday, March 20, and was reported to the El Camino Police Department at 5:41 p.m. Authorities believe the incident to have originated from a verbal argument the prior day.
The ECCPD sent a safety advisory email to the campus community Friday, March 21.
Police Chief Matthew Vander Horck said that as the campus police cannot prove the threat was intended for the person who heard it, it was deemed to be a third-party threat not meeting criminal standards.
Penal Code Section 422, criminal threats, is a specific intent crime which requires that a threat be communicated intentionally and explicitly to another person.
“It’s a third-party threat, which means it’s not criminal in nature. That’s why it’s being handled in human resources, so it doesn’t meet the qualifications of Penal Code Section 422, which would be criminal threats,” Vander Horck said.
The matter is being handled internally through human resources, while specific details remain confidential.
Editor’s note: This article was updated Thursday, March 27 at 7:20 p.m. to provide clarity.