Officer Who Pepper-Sprayed UC Davis Students Is Awarded $38,000

[Deleted]

This is a bit of an iconic image, and maybe even more so now it appears the guy spraying the people sitting down has received around $38,000 in workers comp because of his actions in the picture...

Former UC Davis officer John Pike, famous for casually pepper spraying a group of students in the face during a 2011 protest, was awarded a $38,000 settlement for psychiatric injuries for the way he was treated afterwards.

UC Davis has also settled with the students actually targeted by Pike's pepper spray, agreeing to pay out $1 million total to 21 plaintiffs. That breaks down to a bit less per student than Pike himself will get: $30,000 per plaintiff, plus a $250,000 sum for their lawyers to split and a handful of other delegated portions of the award.

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/natio...tlement/70875/

So do you think this is right?

Should someone be able to claim like this for a position they put themselves in, especially one where those actions also end with them being fired?

[TEHPALLYTANK]

He makes a bad choice that hurts people...then people treat him like shit for making said choice...then he gets money for being hurt by their reaction to his choice?

[Deleted]

Excessive force obviously, but he was targeted substantially.

Death threats to the entire family and the like... Amongst "Mental" trauma.

But eh, E-warriors are just that; cowards.

I dislike the officer a lot, but death threats are quite far when they impact your day to day life.

[Daerio]

At least it really isn't that much money. He didn't deserve a dollar, though. It's amusing he got more money than the students he assaulted.

I assume this didn't see a jury, they would have strung him up.

[Deleted]

Excessive force obviously, but he was targeted substantially.

Oh he was, I remember at the time this exploding on the web but, it's his own fault.

I've done a little more digging (just because I can't get this to sit right in my own head...) and it seems:

The investigation found not only that Pike didn't need to use the spray, but that he used a spray not sanctioned by the department and he used it from an unsafe distance.

http://www.loweringthebar.net/2013/10/pepper-spray.html

Not sure about the source but again, this is totally his own fault (plus with no criminal charges brought) so I just have a hard time seeing how he should get anything.

[Deleted]

He makes a bad choice that hurts people...then people treat him like shit for making said choice...then he gets money for being hurt by their reaction to his choice?

He didn't hurt people.

Pepperspray isn't nice, but it doesn't hurt you.

[Daerio]

He didn't hurt people.

Pepperspray isn't nice, but it doesn't hurt you.

Try spraying yourself in the face, posting it on youtube so I can enjoy it, and then talk about how it doesn't hurt. Then you can make stupid statements like that.

Plenty of people have died from being pepper sprayed, this isn't shit you put on your food. They make pepper spray for BEARS because it's so effective.

[Deleted]

Oh he was, I remember at the time this exploding on the web but, it's his own fault.

I've done a little more digging (just because I can't get this to sit right in my own head...) and it seems:

The investigation found not only that Pike didn't need to use the spray, but that he used a spray not sanctioned by the department and he used it from an unsafe distance.

http://www.loweringthebar.net/2013/10/pepper-spray.html

Not sure about the source but again, this is totally his own fault (plus with no criminal charges brought) so I just have a hard time seeing how he should get anything.

Oh, i agree - he doesn't deserve ANY damages; i was just listing the reactions he garnered from the stupid act.

That being, assaulting (If the correct term) the students with excessive force?

What peeved me, was the reactions taken agaisnt him and his entire family - Condemnation is one thing, vile death threats to the entirety of his family is another...

Which i think he's getting the damages for largely?

[Deleted]

Try spraying yourself in the face, posting it on youtube so I can enjoy it, and then talk about how it doesn't hurt. Then you can make stupid statements like that.

Plenty of people have died from being pepper sprayed, this isn't shit you put on your food. They make pepper spray for BEARS because it's so effective.

I've been pepper sprayed before. It really wasn't that bad. Apart from not being able to open my eyes because the muscles would spasm shut... It wasn't painful, just uncomfortable.

[Yami]

He didn't hurt people.

Pepperspray isn't nice, but it doesn't hurt you.

It can cause you to go blind from prolonged exposure and can cause serious damage to your corneas. So Pepperspray we civilians buy might not cause much damage but the ones police officers use has a higher Scoville Scale. http://blogs.plos.org/speakeasyscien...-pepper-spray/

[Daerio]

I've been pepper sprayed before. It really wasn't that bad. Apart from not being able to open my eyes because the muscles would spasm shut... It wasn't painful, just uncomfortable.

Still waiting on that video.

[seam]

Oh he was, I remember at the time this exploding on the web but, it's his own fault.

I've done a little more digging (just because I can't get this to sit right in my own head...) and it seems:

The investigation found not only that Pike didn't need to use the spray, but that he used a spray not sanctioned by the department and he used it from an unsafe distance.

http://www.loweringthebar.net/2013/10/pepper-spray.html

Not sure about the source but again, this is totally his own fault (plus with no criminal charges brought) so I just have a hard time seeing how he should get anything.

That...doesn't warrant constant deaththreats to him and his family. He didn't kill anyone. He used excessive force.

[Velanis]

Try spraying yourself in the face, posting it on youtube so I can enjoy it, and then talk about how it doesn't hurt. Then you can make stupid statements like that.

Plenty of people have died from being pepper sprayed, this isn't shit you put on your food. They make pepper spray for BEARS because it's so effective.

I was pepper sprayed in boot camp as was every other member of the military, have YOU ever been sprayed? Yes, they make pepper spray for bears - no it's not similar to the stuff that's used by the police. And sure, "plenty" of people ( ie: a handful who had severe allergic reactions ) have died from it, but I suppose if they didn't put themselves in a situation where it had to be used it wouldn't be an issue.

Part of the reason pepper spray is so controversial is that there have been a number of reported deaths where pepper spray was involved. Though the use of pepper spray has never been identified as the sole cause of death in these cases, it has been listed several times as a contributing factor.

[Deleted]

Excessive force used by him and even more excessive force used by internet on him. He deserved his name to be hidden, now he's just trollbait and target of internet heroes. And that's why you never want your name to end up on internet, right google? RIGHT GOOGLE+? On youtube every 5 minutes asking me for my name, RIGHT?

[Deleted]

Still waiting on that video.

I'm not a moronic teenager. Why on Earth would I post a video on YouTube of myself being pepper sprayed?

[Daerio]

I was pepper sprayed in boot camp as was every other member of the military, have YOU ever been sprayed? Yes, they make pepper spray for bears - no it's not similar to the stuff that's used by the police. And sure, "plenty" of people ( ie: a handful who had severe allergic reactions ) have died from it, but I suppose if they didn't put themselves in a situation where it had to be used it wouldn't be an issue.

Part of the reason pepper spray is so controversial is that there have been a number of reported deaths where pepper spray was involved. Though the use of pepper spray has never been identified as the sole cause of death in these cases, it has been listed several times as a contributing factor.

Victim blaming, they must have deserved to die if they got sprayed. That's a new angle. (not really)

Cigarettes have been linked as a contributing factor to cancer. Must mean they don't actually cause deaths.

[Deleted]

meh, he used pepperspray when he really didn't need to, but people also took it too far with death threats and harassment. at least he wasn't awarded loads of money, hes not going to be retiring on that.

[Shockzilla]

They were asked to disperse and refused; the idiots setting on the ground should have been willing to pay for the life lesson the learned that day. Breaking the law has consequences, don’t do the crime if you’re not willing to pay for it. I think they need to be sprayed again today to reinforce the lesson!

[Deleted]

Ridiculous. They've decided what he did was so heinous the victims deserve $30k each yet somehow HE was damaged by the incident? Don't be a piece of shit and you won't be treated like one.

No one deserves 30k.

They were dicks and so was he.

[Deleted]

That...doesn't warrant constant deaththreats to him and his family. He didn't kill anyone. He used excessive force.

I'm not saying it does, those that did that to him should face charges (like he should have really but) however his actions caused this, he made himself a hate figure by doing this and although I don't think anyone can say he deserved what happened, if he hadn't done it we wouldn't be having this conversation.