A Police Officer Was Forced To Release Pepper Spray. At 4 Year Old.

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Wednesday April 04, 2012 · 8:10 PM PDT

2012/04/04 · 20:10

A four year old girl was pepper-sprayed by Santa Monica College Campus Police last evening. All in the name of public safety, of course.

Michael Yanow / Getty Images

It wasn't just students protesting tuition hikes who were blasted with pepper spray by campus police at Santa Monica College yesterday. This child -- apparently a 4-year-old girl -- was also hit. The students, and child, were pepper-sprayed to prevent them from "storming" -- i.e. attending -- a board of trustee's meeting.

What dire threat prompted this reenactment of John Pike's famous "spray heard round the world." ? Someone with a gun? Rocks thrown? Tens of thousands threatening to storm the Bastille? Hoodies donned? Someone shouting "Hella, Hella Occupy" ? Nope. Much worse than any of that. A bunch of people wanted to go to a meeting to protest class cutbacks.

Santa Monica College officials said Wednesday a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety after a large crowd of students tried to force entry into a meeting of the Board of Trustees...
The trustees were considering a proposal to offer higher-priced courses at the college this summer to help students who have been shut out of the classes they needed to transfer to four-year universities.

You might wonder why campus police would be carrying pepper spray in the first place. And then you might wonder why some kind of warning wasn't given, or if that didn't work why even a 'demonstration' on one or two individuals might not have been warranted first. Instead, videos show several people running down the hall away from the spray in agony. There are no reports of any warnings being issued, along with an eyewitness who claims there was in fact none given.

"Insanity. Overreaction. It started out just chanting and we're getting our point across," said Christine Deal, 20, who said an officer grabbed her neck. "Things escalated with the campus police, and kids got pepper-sprayed and put in choke holds and thrown on the ground -- sent to the emergency room."
"I think if they were going to pepper-spray that we should have been given some kind of warning," she added.

Not to worry though.

The college informed participants who were injured that they can submit medical bills to the students affairs office.

What they don't tell you is that you'll get your bills back with a big REJECTED stamp. Plus the fact that you submitted them will be reported to the same police who sprayed you in the first place -- to be used to charge you as was done by UC Berkeley when students sought medical treatment after being brutalized by police.

The phrase

a police officer was forced to release pepper spray...

did not go unnoticed by the Twitterverse. It's not as as if someone put a non-lethal weapon to the officer's head and told him to "release pepper spray... or else you'll end up like Scott Olsen!" after all.

A sampling of the tweets it inspired:

Aaron Bady @zunguzungu
"In my younger & more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice: a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety"
Scott Johnson @OakScott
@zunguzungu "It really sucks that they made us pepper spray them..."

Aaron Bady @zunguzungu
"Through the fence, between the curling flower spaces, I could see a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety"

JP Massar @jpmassar
@zunguzungu M: "Damnit Spock, a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety!" S: "That is not logical, Doctor."

Aaron Bady @zunguzungu
"Once upon a time and a very good time it was, a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety"

Aaron Bady @zunguzungu
"Someone must have slandered Josef K., for one morning, a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety"

Aaron Bady @zunguzungu
"It was a bright cold day in April and the clocks were striking 13. A police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety"

Aaron Bady @zunguzungu
"Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety"

Aaron Bady @zunguzungu
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety"

Jane Hu @hujane
@zunguzungu "All animals are created equal, but some animals will be forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety."

ProfWards
@zunguzungu Sing Goddess of the anger of a policeman forced to release pepper spray to maintain public safety & the countless ills that fell

Sean Gillies @sgillies
@zunguzungu That's no moon, it's a police officer forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety.

Edmond Caldwell @edmondcaldwell
@zunguzungu "Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins, where a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety."

michael de la madera @actongriscom
@zunguzungu "Call me Ishmael. Some years ago - never mind how long - a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety"

Bondles @Bondles
The cylons were created by man. They rebelled. A police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety.

GonzOakland Reply
In the beginning, the universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and a peace officer was forced to release pepper spray.

A police officer was forced to release pepper spray. So it goes.

8:22 PM PT: Find more literary tweets of this ilk.

8:26 PM PT:

Drew Saunders ‏ @drewbsaunders

I think we have a winner. @curecanti @zunguzungu Mrs Dalloway decided to release the pepper spray herself.

8:39 PM PT:

Roughly 30 people had to be treated for their injuries and two people had to be hospitalized. Twitter user Sarah Belknap was at the meeting and tweeted that she saw the young girl get sprayed in the face and that several people were nearly trampled in the chaos. Anyone who has ever been around pepper spray when it's in use knows that it's generally something you don't want to spray indoors, as there is nowhere for the noxious fumes to disperse. Several students also complained of rough treatment by the baton-wielding police trying to clear out the crowd. Santa Monica city police were present at the meeting, but say it was campus police who were responsible for the crowd control measures.

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/...

10:32 PM PT:

josh leffler ‏ @joshleffler

"but I tell you, my lord fool, out of this nettle, danger, we release pepper spray to maintain safety." @zunguzungu

Thu Apr 05, 2012 at 7:31 AM PT:

guardianangelz ‏ @guardianangelz

Five score and seven years ago, a police officer was forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety.

Thu Apr 05, 2012 at 7:32 AM PT:

Jacob Remes ‏ @jacremes

Advertisements for these products almost always show a woman peace officer being forced to deploy pepper spray to maintain safety

Retweeted by Aaron Bady

Thu Apr 05, 2012 at 7:35 AM PT:

Occupy Wall Street ‏ @OccupyWallStNYC

You can't pepper-spray away an idea. #OWS

Thu Apr 05, 2012 at 7:36 AM PT: Check it out!

Forced to release pepper spray meme

Thu Apr 05, 2012 at 7:39 AM PT:

Into every generation a slayer is born: one girl in all the world. So a police officer was forced to release pepper spray for safety.

Thu Apr 05, 2012 at 7:40 AM PT:

A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, force a police officer to release pepper spray for safety.

Thu Apr 05, 2012 at 7:42 AM PT:

Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six peace officers were forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety before breakfast.

Thu Apr 05, 2012 at 8:46 AM PT: From the comments:

Two households, both alike in dignity,

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,

From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,

Where civil blood makes an officer release pepper spray in order to maintain safety.

Thu Apr 05, 2012 at 8:46 AM PT:

Lady Barber Brown ‏ @LadyBarberBrown

@zunguzungu Coloring my hair this morning. Per manufacturer instructions I will be forced to release pepper spray to maintain safety.

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A Police Officer Was Forced To Release Pepper Spray. At 4 Year Old.

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