A UCLA law student who said she was accosted and pepper-sprayed in the face by a pro-Palestinian protester during the 2024 on-campus encampments has dropped her lawsuit against the UC Regents.
Alexandra Shamash also maintained in her Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit that when she sought help from a campus security officer, the plaintiff was turned away and told to find the police on her own.
On Thursday, Shamash’s attorneys filed court papers with Judge Samantha Jessner asking that the complaint be dismissed “with prejudice,” meaning it cannot be revived. The court papers do not state if a settlement was reached or if Shamash is not pursuing the case for other reasons.
The UC Regents attorneys denied any wrongdoing on the part of UCLA.
In her lawsuit, Shamash said was accosted and pepper-sprayed without provocation at about 1:10 p.m. April 28, 2024. Shamash alleged that UCLA knew the protesters were on campus and were dangerous to others.
Shamash asked a campus security guard for help, but she was turned away and told that she needed to get police help by herself, the suit alleged.
Los Angeles police told Shamash’s mother that they could not intervene because UCLA police were in charge, the suit further stated. When the plaintiff’s mother reached UCLA police, they also were unhelpful, the suit stated.
Although Shamash knew that it was typical for demonstrations to occur at UCLA, the event that day was not a demonstration, the suit states.
“This was a permitted assembly of violent assailants who attacked UCLA students,” according to Shamash’s complaint, which was filed in February 2025 and alleged assault, general negligence and dangerous condition of public property.