Cal State Student Pleads No Contest in Extortion Case

A Cal State Northridge student accused of threatening professors pleaded no contest Friday to charges that he sought $200 in hush money from another student who was smoking marijuana.

Under a three-way agreement between Gustavo Gutierrez, Superior Court and the university, Gutierrez was sentenced to three years’ probation and barred from ever returning to the campus as a student. He also must work 30 days on a Caltrans crew.

“Under personal protest, I make this plea,” Gutierrez told San Fernando Superior Court Judge Robert J. Schuit.

Gutierrez said later that the university had given him a choice of being suspended from Cal State Northridge if he accepted the plea agreement or being banned from attending any Cal State campus if he had allowed the case to go to trial. University officials refused to comment on the negotiations.

Gutierrez’s marijuana extortion case and accusations that he stalked professors have divided members of the sociology faculty and the university administration. At least three grievances--two by faculty members and one by Gutierrez--were filed against the administration as a result of the dispute. Faculty members said the university favored students’ rights over their safety and Gutierrez said the university was protecting faculty at his expense.

“It’s the cult of the student, in which the student can do no wrong,” said professor Lawrence Sneden, who has filed a grievance against Northridge for not taking action against Gutierrez sooner. “Students can insult professors and harass them with racism, homophobia, whatever. But professors confront a hostile administration if they try to do something about it.”

Sneden said Gutierrez threatened him and other professors through his oral and written presentations. Gutierrez countered that his references to harsh treatment of gay, white men were hypothetical situations in the context of his course work on the treatment of immigrants.

The case has strained relations within Northridge’s student government, in which Gutierrez served as director of public safety. One student senator filed a complaint with the administration against Gutierrez, alleging sexual harassment, and called for his removal. Student President Robert Hanff has said he would reserve action until after the trial.

The extortion case stems from a complaint filed in November by Gutierrez’s suite mate, David Gomez, at the University Park Apartments. While serving as a resident advisor in the university-run apartments, the complaint said, Gutierrez told Gomez to pay him $200 for not reporting the drug violation.

Only a month earlier, the Residence Hall Assn. had awarded Gutierrez a certificate for creating a tightly knit community on his floor.

“I had established a record of service and leadership on campus,” Gutierrez said.