Iran sanctioned former UF Police Department chief Linda Stump-Kurnick and ten other law enforcement leaders across the nation July 4 for “flagrant violation of human rights by suppressing [the] pro-Palestine student protest movement.”
Stump-Kurnick and other officials named in the sanctions are now banned from entering Iranian territories. They will be blocked from owning Iranian-based assets and making transactions with Iranian banking systems.
The sanctions follow the arrests of nine pro-Palestinian protesters at UF April 29 on charges including trespassing, failure to obey a law enforcement officer, wearing a mask on public property and battery on a law enforcement officer. The UFPD trespassed all nine protestors from campus for three years.
Two protestors — Tess Segal, a 20-year-old UF sustainability sophomore and Augustino Matthias Pulliam, a 20-year-old UF music sophomore — pleaded not guilty in court July 3. On July 2, the state offered a third protestor, 23-year-old Jinx Rooney, to accept a deferred prosecution agreement, which would stop the case from going to trial if the defendant agreed to certain requirements.
Five of the 11 officials Iran sanctioned are university police officials, including Arizona State University's police chief, an assistant chief at University of Texas’ police department and the Central Division Chief for the Indiana University Police Department.
Stump-Kurnick announced June 12 she was stepping down as UFPD chief after 20 years on the job to become UF’s Assistant Vice President of Public Safety. Major Bart Knowles is now the interim UFPD chief.
Stump-Kurnick did not respond to requests for comment.
The sanctions are based on a 2017 Iranian law, “Countering the Violation of Human Rights and Adventurous and Terrorist Activities of the United States in the Region.” Other U.S. officials who have been sanctioned under this law include former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, U.S. Senator Cory Booker and former Secretary of State Michael Pompeo.
Contact Avery Parker at aparker@alligator.org. Follow him on X @AveryParke98398.
Avery Parker is a third-year English and History major covering university affairs for The Alligator. Outside of reporting, Avery spends his time doting on his cats, reading, and listening to music by the Manwolves.
