The chancellor of the University of
California, Davis, under calls to resign, Saturday called police use of pepper
spray on seated Occupy protesters "chilling" and established a task
force to look into the incident.
The video broadcast by CNN Sacramento
affiliate KOVR showed an officer, in a sweeping motion, spraying protesters
point blank on Friday before other officers moved in. Eleven people were
treated on site for effects of the yellow spray. Two of them were sent to the
hospital, university officials said.
"Yesterday was not a day that
would make anyone on our campus proud; indeed the events of the day need to
guide us forward as we try to make our campus a better place of inquiry,
debate, and even dissent," Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi said in a
statement.
The incident set off a flood of
comments on the school's Facebook page, most of them critical of police and the
administration. Protesters rallied again Saturday evening.
In a press conference later Saturday,
Katehi refused calls from faculty members and others for her to step down,
saying she did not violate campus policies.
"Very unexpected, sad and very
inappropriate at least on the face of it," she said of the video, adding
she wants the task force to look at how students can express their opinions.
The Davis Faculty Association, citing
incidents at other campuses, demanded "that the chancellors of the
University of California cease using police violence to repress nonviolent
political protests." It called for greater attention to cuts in state
funding to education and rising tuition.
"Student debt has reached
unprecedented levels as bank profits swell," the group said on its
website.
Time: Watch video of police
pepper-spraying and arresting students
UC-Davis spokeswoman Claudia Morain
told CNN that 25 tents were in place Friday afternoon -- despite fliers
explaining the campus prohibits overnight camping. It does so for security and
health reasons, Katehi said.
After written and verbal warnings,
officers reminded the protesters they would be subject to arrest if they did
not move their tents from the quad, Morain said. Many protesters did decide to
remove their tents and equipment, officials said.
A group of about a dozen protesters
sat on a path with their arms interlocked as police moved in to remove
additional tents. Most of the protesters had their heads down.
At one point, protesters encircled
the officers and blocked them from leaving, Morain said. Cut off from backup,
the officers determined the situation was not safe and asked people several
times to make room, Morain said. One officer used pepper spray when a couple of
protesters and some of the 200 bystanders moved in, she added.
Annette Spicuzza, chief of campus
police, said officers in riot gear were unable to get out after they were
encircled.
A use of force review will
"determine whether we made all the right decisions and handled it the way
we should have handled it," Spicuzza told reporters.
Ten people were arrested during the
face-off, Morain said late Friday. Tentative charges were failure to disperse
and lodging without permission.
Morain said the pepper spray was used
in lieu of batons. "Obviously, they use this only as a last resort,"
she said of the officers.
Katehi said the incident followed
weeklong peaceful demonstrations over the campus, the cost of higher education
and other issues.
"During the early afternoon
hours and because of the request to take down the tents, many students decided
to dismantle their tents, a decision for which we are very thankful," she
wrote. "However, a group of students and non-campus affiliates decided to
stay. The university police then came to dismantle the encampment. ... As
indicated in various videos, the police used pepper spray against the students
who were blocking the way. The use of pepper spray as shown on the video is
chilling to us all and raises many questions about how best to handle
situations like this."
Katehi said the task force made of
faculty, students and staff will review the events and provide a report within
90 days.
"This report will help inform
our policies and processes within the university administration and the Police
Department to help us avoid similar outcomes in the future," she said.
By the CNN Wire Staff
CNN's Marlena Baldacci contributed to this repor
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