Officers involved in the Nov. 18 pepper spray incident on the UC Davis campus will not face criminal charges, according to a statement released last Wednesday by Assistant Chief Deputy District Attorney Michael Cabral.
“Viewing the incident through the totality of the circumstances, there is insufficient evidence to establish proof beyond a reasonable doubt that the use of force involved in the November 18, 2011, pepper spraying was unlawful and therefore warrants the filing of criminal charges,” a 13-page District Attorney (DA) report stated.
The report filed by the DA relied mainly on the facts presented in the Kroll Report that investigated the incident, although the statement indicated that the conduct of the officer who pepper sprayed the demonstrators, Lt. John Pike, was “not objectively reasonable.”
The statement also said that the DA report made clear the legal role of the prosecutor in the case, as the role of the DA’s office does not involve “an evaluation of administrative, civil or Internal Affairs liability for the participants” nor does it review whether or not the policies were properly followed.
“The scope of the District Attorney’s review is solely an evaluation of whether the filing of criminal charges is warranted by the events of November 18, 2011,” the report stated.
Though the terms of the legal settlement have not been released formally, University of California President Mark Yudof thought the results of the settlement were appropriate.
“On the whole, I thought it was fair,” he said.
— MUNA SADEK
