Cal Poly student who fired guns on campus sentenced to prison

December 15, 2025

Cal Poly students Charles Hojaboom and Brandon Pham

By KAREN VELIE

A former Cal Poly student was recently sentenced to serve six years and two months in state prison after he fired guns on the Cal Poly campus in 2023.

In August, Charles Hojaboom pled no contest to shooting at an inhabited dwelling, discharging a firearm with gross negligence, vandalism, and five counts of possessing a loaded firearm on a college campus. He admitted that he “personally used” a deadly or dangerous weapon.

Because of that admission, and because he also pled no contest to shooting at an inhabited dwelling, Hojaboom now stands convicted of two separate “strikes” under California’s Three Strikes Law.

The charges in this case stem from four separate shootings that occurred on the Cal Poly campus between June 10, 2023, and Nov. 11, 2023.

On Oct. 27, 2023, Hojaboom fired a rifle inside of his dorm room. Investigators later discovered a bullet had traveled from inside of Hojaboom’s dorm room, through the ceiling, and into the dorm room directly above.  There were no injuries reported during any of these shootings.

“While we are grateful that no one was injured by these crimes of violence, the safety of everyone on our school and university campuses is of utmost importance,” said District Attorney Dan Dow. “Gun violence like this will be vigorously prosecuted to appropriately punish the individual and to deter others from committing such crimes.”

Hojaboom’s co-defendant Brandon Pham pleaded no contest to charges of possessing a loaded firearm on campus and firing a firearm on campus. He was sentenced to 210 days in jail, two years probation, and 60 hours of community service.