UC-Davis Police Chief Fired Pepper-Spraying Officer Despite Recommendation

The chief of the campus police at the University of California at Davis overruled the recommendation of an internal-affairs investigation and fired the officer who became a target of widespread outrage when he pepper-sprayed student protesters on the campus last fall, according to The Sacramento Bee. The university acknowledged this week that the officer, Lt. John Pike, was no longer employed there but declined to discuss the details of his departure. An internal-affairs report, obtained by the newspaper, concluded that Mr. Pike’s actions were “reasonable under the circumstances,” and a subsequent review said that he should have faced only demotion or suspension. But the campus police chief, Matthew Carmichael, rejected that recommendation and, in a letter to Mr. Pike in April, told him that “the needs of the department do not justify your continued employment.” Mr. Pike had been on paid leave since last fall’s incident.