Investigation, calls for resignation follow spread of Calif. university pepper spray video

By Associated Press, Sunday, November 20, 3:47 AM

SAN FRANCISCO — As video spread of an officer in riot gear blasting pepper spray into the faces of seated protesters at a northern California university, outrage came quickly — followed almost as quickly by defense from police and calls for the chancellor’s resignation.

University of California Davis Chancellor Linda Katehi said in a statement Saturday she was forming a task force to investigate the police action and the video images she said were “chilling.”

November 2011: The movement, which started Sept. 17 with a few dozen demonstrators who tried to pitch tents in front of the New York Stock Exchange, has spread to cities around the world.

However, a law enforcement official who watched the clip called the use of force “fairly standard police procedure.”

In the video, an officer dispassionately pepper-sprays a line of several sitting protesters who flinch and cover their faces but remain passive with their arms interlocked as onlookers shriek and scream out for the officer to stop.

(More here.)