Isla Vista Community Services District debriefed the Isla Vista Safe meeting held on May 7 to identify areas of improvement and ways to collaborate between local law enforcement and UC Santa Barbara entities at their May 13 meeting.
IVCSD identified areas of improvement and ways to collaborate between local law enforcement and UC Santa Barbara entities. Nexus file photo
Isla Vista Safe is a community task force that serves to address public safety issues including sexual assault, gun violence, substance use, Deltopia and Halloween weekends, cliff safety and community issues with law enforcement. Many entities were present at the I.V. Safe meeting, including the Isla Vista Community Services District (IVCSD), Standing Together to End Sexual Assault (STESA), Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office (SBCSO) and Isla Vista Foot Patrol (IVFP).
First, Executive Director of STESA Elsa Granados mentioned women notifying STESA that law enforcement had been citing and arresting women to “avoid being assaulted,” according to IVCSD President Spencer Brandt.
While law enforcement denied these claims, IVCSD Board Director and second-year political science and environmental studies double major Kylan Hobart said IVFP responded to these claims by saying “[officers] didn’t tell people to say that, but they can’t control what officers say in the field to people that they’re citing.”
Brandt said it still makes for a “good discussion” to ensure those messages aren’t being delivered from police to women.
Police media strategies were also discussed — according to Brandt, SBCSO Undersheriff Craig Bonner “acknowledged” that SBCSO has been sending press releases to out-of-town outlets. According to Brandt, Bonner believes he “does not think this strategy is working” and they plan to participate in a committee with IVCSD and UCSB to review “pre-Deltopia messaging” next year.
“I was very satisfied with their understanding of how they can better frame and communicate their message to the public without notifying out-of-town outlets,” Brandt said.
They also discussed concerns regarding SBCSO sharing the arrest and citation log from Deltopia with UCSB and Santa Barbara City College to verify how many arrests and citations were given to enrolled students, which “has not happened over the last number of years,” according to Brandt.
Brandt also said that SBCSO may have given “false information” out as far as the percentage of arrests and citations given to UCSB students, since the number SBCSO gave at the I.V. Safe meeting was “walked back” because it was an “estimate.”
Brandt emphasized the importance of having accurate data regarding arrests and citations given to local students.
“I think the general sentiment in the room was that it’s important that this data is being shared with our educational partners for them to do these verifications, if anything so that we have the data about to what degree this is an out-of-town problem present during any given unsanctioned event,” Brandt said.
They also discussed the Restorative Justice Program, which allows certain citations to be waived through classes and community service, but was suspended by SBCSO during Deltopia. IVFP Lieutenant Garrett TeSlaa said at the April 8 IVCSD meeting that people could still utilize the district attorney’s Restorative Justice Program, which Brandt said SBCSO acknowledged was “not true” at the I.V. Safe meetings, as citations aren’t eligible through the district attorney’s Restorative Justice Program.
Hobart said SBCSO “didn’t have” demographic information for citations at the I.V. Safe meeting and clarified that only public intoxication citations were eligible through the district attorney’s office.
“I did personally ask a question to Lieutenant [Joe] Schmidt about them making it more clear what that process looks like after receiving [citations], and he did sound interested,” Hobart said.
IVCSD Board Director Kirsten Deshler emphasized the importance of knowing the number of out-of-towners at Deltopia, as it would “really drive [their] strategy” for next year. IVCSD General Manager Jonathan Abboud clarified that if they wanted those numbers, UCSB would have to request it.
Lastly, Santa Barbara County Second District Supervisor Laura Capps announced that the rental housing inspection pilot program would be commencing in the summer.
A version of this article appeared on p. 4 of the May 22, 2025 print edition of the Daily Nexus.
