UC Pepper Spray Cop Files For Disablility

The former University Of California Davis campus cop who infamously and oh-so-casually doused students with pepper spray in 2011 has filed a worker's compensation claim with the state, claiming that the incident caused him to suffer a mental disability.

John Pike ceased to be a UCD employee in July 2012. He remains entitled to retirement credit for his years of service, a UCD spokesperson said at the time, but he was to receive no other payout. If Pike receives disability benefits, it will cover income, health and other benefits until he turns 65. Pike, whose annual salary was $121,680, remained on paid leave for eight months while the pepper-spraying was investigated. As dozens watched on Nov. 18, 2011, Pike sprayed a group of seated, unarmed students blocking a sidewalk on the Quad that officers were using to take away protesters arrested at a day-old encampment created in part because of opposition to repeated tuition hikes.

An attorney for Occupy UC Davis, which won a $1M settlement from the university, says that a protest will be staged outside of Pike's compensation hearing in August.