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Police use of Pepper Spray

BERLIN (Reuters) – Two Berlin police officers were pelted by snowballs thrown by a group of about 40 youths but were able to fight them off with pepper spray, police said on Sunday.

The officers were investigating a brawl early Saturday morning. They ignored demands from a group of about 25 youths to leave and were then attacked by snowballs. The number of youths throwing snowballs quickly grew to 40.

The officers first retreated but then fought back with the pepper spray, prompting the youths to flee. Many were later arrested. There were no injuries, police said.

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Baywatch star Pamela Anderson was left badly shaken after cops pounced on a crazed fan who followed her onto a train.

The 43-year-old model was confronted by the stalker who was subdued with pepper spray after he resisted arrest.

 

A witness on the platform said police quickly brought the situation under control.

 He said: "An altercation took place which resulted in a police officer being assaulted.

"A man became verbally abusive to staff when asked to produce a rail ticket. He became violent and officers were forced to use spray."

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MESQUITE — An out-of-control crowd of shoppers was on the verge of violence at Town East Mall in Mesquite Thursday morning, and it was all over a pair of shoes.

It was the first appearance of the $175 Air Jordan 11 Retro design. Twenty-five years after their debut, Air Jordans are still a must-have for Christmas, but the crowd at Town East was so unruly, officers had to step in with pepper spray..

The waiting started around midnight. Three stores at Town East Mall were offering the new Jordans.

But there was just one way into shopping center when it opened at 6 a.m.

The first sign of trouble came when shoppers pushed on the glass door and broke it.

"Then you hear the glass, at that point, and everyone took off," said shopper Crystal Browning. "You knew it had gotten out of hand at that point."

Police said they acted after a young boy was pinned against the door. Though he wasn't injured, officers used pepper spray on the crowd to gain control.

"We did not hear, at no point, any police person give us any kind of warning saying, 'You need to back up.' All we got was pepper spray," Browning said.

Long lines were also seen in Houston, where shoppers staked out a Foot Action store early Thursday. At the Deerwood Mall, shoppers dashed toward the entrance — some, reportedly, breaking into the shopping center.

"They were bum-rushing; they were running in, pushing everybody out of the way," said one witness. "Trying to hurry up and get in line so they can be the first to get them."

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People may not have appreciated the police using the pepper spray but when someone gets seriously hurt or killed they realize the importance a nonlethal form of crowd control can be.