SANTA MONICA — A Santa Monica College custodial manager who was shot at a branch facility Monday night, forcing the college’s campuses to close while a manhunt was conducted for the suspect, died Wednesday.
According to a statement from SMC, 54-year-old Felicia Hudson, a custodial operations manager, died at about 5 p.m. Wednesday.
Hudson was shot around 9:50 p.m. Monday at the SMC Center for Media & Design in the 1600 block of Stewart Street, between Olympic Boulevard and Colorado Avenue, according to the Santa Monica Police Department. Police quickly deemed it a case of “workplace violence,” although no details have been released about a possible motive for the shooting.
The suspect, 39-year-old SMC custodian Davon Durell Dean was located around 3 p.m. Tuesday in his vehicle near near El Segundo and Aviation boulevards in Hawthorne.
After a short pursuit, a pursuit intervention technique, or PIT maneuver, was used to stop the suspect’s vehicle. The Hawthorne Police Department’s Crisis Negotiations Team attempted to coax the suspect out of the car, but Dean was found dead inside the vehicle from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said.
“We are deeply saddened and shocked by the tragic loss of our colleague Felicia Hudson, who served the college for nearly three decades with dedication and heart. She took great pride in being a steadfast coworker and leader,” SMC Superintendent/President Kathryn E. Jeffery said in a statement Wednesday night. “To Felicia’s family, loved ones and friends, SMC extends our heartfelt condolences and prayers. The college will be conducting a thorough review of this incident. SMC is providing crisis counseling services to employees and students as we grieve our irreplaceable colleague.”
The Santa Monica College Foundation has established a legacy fund in collaboration with Hudson’s family. Details are available online at foundation.smc.edu/felicia-hudson
Police said Dean had a history of arrests, including attempted murder in 2011 and assault with a deadly weapon involving a firearm in 2019. Dean only had convictions for misdemeanor property crimes. According to SMC officials, by law, the college is only able to consider convictions in its hiring decisions and is unaware of unaware of an applicant’s arrest history.
All of the college’s campuses were closed Tuesday in response to the shooing, and operations will remain online until at least Sunday.
“I am so proud of our detectives who worked tirelessly throughout the night in collaboration with our partners at the Santa Monica College Police Department to identify and locate the suspect in this tragic incident,” Santa Monica Police Department Chief Ramon Batista said in a statement Tuesday night.
“Our officers’ commitment to the safety of the Santa Monica community is evident and remains paramount.”
Anyone with information about the shooting was asked to call the Santa Monica Police Department at 310-395-9931 or 310-458-8495.
SMC employees can call 800-882-1341 to contact the Employee Assistance Service for Education program, which provides free, short-term counseling to SMC employees who may be experiencing emotional distress. The SMC Center for Wellness and Wellbeing can be reached at cww@smc.edu, or 310-434-4503, and a 24-hour student hotline is also available at 800-691-6003.
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