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Se piensa que el crimen involucró a tres guardias.

Se piensa que el crimen involucró a tres guardias.
It is thought that the crime involved three guards.
From Lesson 307:Impersonal statements (se dice que)·Spanish (Latin America)

Questions & Answers about Se piensa que el crimen involucró a tres guardias.

Why does Se piensa que use the indicative involucró instead of the subjunctive?
Even though se piensa (it is thought) is an impersonal expression, the verb pensar in the affirmative states a belief or a perceived fact. Expressions that declare knowledge, certainty, or belief (like se sabe que, se dice que, se piensa que) take the indicative. If it were negative (no se piensa que), it would cast doubt and you would use the subjunctive.
Is Se piensa an example of the impersonal se or the passive se here?
It is the impersonal se. While they look similar, the structure here is impersonal because the clause starting with que acts as the object of the verb. It is used to express what 'people in general' think, which translates smoothly to the English passive 'It is thought that...'.
Why is there an a before tres guardias?
This is the personal a. Whenever the direct object of a verb is a specific person or a group of people, you must put an a in front of it. Since the guards are people, involucró a is required.
If the guards are male, why does the sentence use guardias instead of guardios?
The noun guardia (meaning guard) always ends in -a, regardless of the person's gender. You indicate the gender using the article, such as el guardia for a male guard or la guardia for a female guard. The word itself never changes to end in -o.

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