A smorgasbord of lawsuits filed against the UCSB Police Department by current and former officers has finally been resolved, with a Santa Barbara jury last week awarding three of those officers a combined $3.3 million in damages.
The jury found the department had unlawfully retaliated against the trio after they reported a chronic pattern of workplace misconduct, including allegations of nepotism and favoritism, misuse of university resources, interference with investigations, and accusations of sexual harassment.
Their three cases ― along with three others that resulted in no monetary awards ― were filed between 2018 and 2021 and consolidated into a single lawsuit against the Regents of the University of California, which oversees all UCSB operations. A spokesperson for the Regents did not respond to requests for comment…