Student Facing Trial Must Avoid Campus

A student leader at Cal State Northridge accused of extorting money from a dormitory resident was ordered Wednesday to stay away from campus pending the outcome of his trial, which starts this month.

The Superior Court judge’s protective order also requires Gustavo Gutierrez, 26, of Mission Hills to avoid contact with student David Gomez. Gomez told police Gutierrez forced him to pay $200 in November to keep Gutierrez from reporting that he had smoked marijuana in the University Park Apartments.

Deputy City Atty. Jan De Andrade, who requested the protective order, said, “That was one of my goals: to get him off campus.� She said she expects to call several witnesses from the apartment complex who will testify that Gutierrez took money from them.

Gutierrez has pleaded not guilty to the charge of compounding a crime by not reporting it, a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail or a $1,000 fine. Trial is set for Jan. 22.

Gutierrez, who is a police liaison for the Associated Students and a residence hall advisor, needs only a few more classes to graduate, university officials said.

He appeared in San Fernando Superior Court on Wednesday with a public defender.

The university is conducting a separate investigation into claims by three sociology professors that Gutierrez made threatening remarks and followed them to their homes.