Campus Alert Archive
SDSU

Halloween Night Gunfire at the Trolley Station: SDSU Cancels Festivities After Transit Center Shooting

CAshootingemergency notificationhigh confidence
Confirmed Threat

On the evening of October 31, 2024, a man was shot at the SDSU Transit Center trolley stop near Campanile Drive and Hardy Avenue. Two suspects were taken into custody, including the alleged shooter, while police searched the campus for a possible third suspect. No SDSU students, faculty, or staff were involved, and all evening classes and Aztec Nights Halloween events were canceled.

Alerts
6
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
1
Institution
San Diego State University
Public R2 · CA
~36,000 studentsSDSU Alert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

6 messages in sequence · 6 verified verbatim

INITIAL ALERTmulti-channel
Verified verbatimSDSU Urgent Campus Information archive219 chars
Police are investigating a report of a person who has been injured in the area of 5100 College Avenue. Police are on scene and this is an active investigation. This is not related to the earlier reports of a brush fire.
Posted to the SDSU Urgent Campus Information archive at 5:17 PM PDT on October 31, 2024, roughly 39 minutes after the shooting was reported
Disambiguates from an earlier brush fire alert posted the same evening on a separate archive page
The shooting occurred at the underground trolley stop near Campanile Drive and Hardy Avenue
UPDATEmulti-channel+5 min
Verified verbatimSDSU Urgent Campus Information archive243 chars
Suspect is identified as a Hispanic male wearing a white shirt and tan cargo pants. Those on campus are asked to stay indoors and to be alert until additional information is provided. This is an active police situation. More details to follow.
Posted at 5:22 PM PDT on October 31, 2024 — the first message to provide a suspect description and shelter-in-place direction
Asks the campus community to stay indoors but does not yet confirm a shooting
UPDATEmulti-channel+13 min
Verified verbatimSDSU Urgent Campus Information archive285 chars
Police have confirmed that one person has been shot and transported to a local hospital. One suspect is in custody. Individuals involved are not SDSU affiliates. Those on campus are asked to remain indoors and to be on alert. This is an active police situation. More details to follow.
Posted at 5:30 PM PDT on October 31, 2024 — first message to confirm a shooting and that the people involved were not SDSU affiliates
Continues the indoor-shelter directive
UPDATEmulti-channel+27 min
Verified verbatimSDSU Urgent Campus Information archive539 chars
Police have confirmed that a second suspect, identified as the alleged shooter, is now in custody and a weapon has been recovered. The individual was arrested following an altercation in the area of 5100 College Avenue that resulted in one person being shot. Out of an abundance of caution, remain indoors – an additional update will be shared. No students, faculty and staff were involved or injured. University evening classes and events and activities, including Aztec Nights events, have been canceled for the rest of tonight, Oct. 31.
Posted at 5:44 PM PDT on October 31, 2024 — confirms the alleged shooter is in custody and a firearm was recovered
Cancels Aztec Nights Halloween activities and remaining evening classes
Maintains the shelter-in-place directive even after both suspects were detained
UPDATEmulti-channel+2 h
Verified verbatimSDSU Urgent Campus Information archive126 chars
Police ask all to remain indoors until 7:35 p.m., as they search for a third suspect believed to be connected to the shooting.
Posted at 7:17 PM PDT on October 31, 2024 — extends the shelter-in-place by ~18 minutes while police search for a possible third suspect
First mention of a third suspect; the brevity reflects that police did not yet have details to share
ALL CLEARmulti-channel+2h 45m
Verified verbatimSDSU Urgent Campus Information archive219 chars
After a thorough search, police determined the third suspect, who is believed to be connected to the incident, is not on or near campus. There is no threat to the campus community, and police have provided an All Clear.
Posted at 8:02 PM PDT on October 31, 2024 — distributed via text, email, the SDSU Safe app, social media, and web-based communications
Lifts the shelter-in-place directive nearly three hours after the first 5:17 PM PDT alert
Context

Background

On Halloween evening, October 31, 2024, a shooting occurred at the SDSU Transit Center trolley stop near 5100 College Avenue on the edge of the San Diego State University campus. A call about a man being shot came in around 4:38 PM PDT, and officers found a gunshot victim at the underground trolley stop. The shooting stemmed from an altercation between individuals not affiliated with SDSU. Two suspects were quickly apprehended, with the alleged shooter arrested by 5:44 PM and a weapon recovered. Police then searched for a possible third suspect, asking campus occupants to remain indoors until approximately 8:02 PM PDT when the all-clear was issued. No SDSU students, faculty, or staff were involved or injured. All evening classes and Aztec Nights events were canceled for the remainder of the night. Students later raised concerns about campus safety in the aftermath of the incident.
Analysis

Key Findings

The shooting involved non-SDSU-affiliated individuals in an altercation at the campus trolley stop, not an active shooter scenario
The campus response spanned over three hours from the initial report to the all-clear at 8:02 PM PDT on October 31, 2024
All Halloween evening events and classes were canceled as a precaution
Outcome
Two suspects were arrested and a weapon was recovered. The victim, who was not affiliated with SDSU, was transported to a hospital. A search for a third suspect concluded with no one found on or near campus. The all-clear was issued at 8:02 PM PDT.
Provenance

Sources

  1. Student Paper
    Two suspects in custody after shooting at SDSU transit center, as police provide all clear (The Daily Aztec)
    thedailyaztec.com
  2. News
    SDSU shooting: Person shot at trolley stop, police say (Fox 5 San Diego)
    fox5sandiego.com
  3. Official
    Police Activity Near Campus - SDSU Alert (official)
    urgent.sdsu.edu
  4. News
    Suspect in custody after one shot at San Diego State University (NBC San Diego)
    nbcsandiego.com
Tags
shootingtransittrolley-stationcaliforniahalloweennon-affiliatedshelter-in-place
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion