UCD student: I was coughing up blood, vomiting

David Buscho led a crowd of thousands at the University of California-Davis, near Sacramento Monday in what has become their rallying cry.

"Our university!" they chanted.

"I want us to take back this university brick-by-brick, and we will do it with dignity and respect!" Buscho said.

The protesters, reports CBS News national correspondent Ben Tracy, are outraged because university police officers shot pepper spray directly into the faces of students balking over tuition hikes last week -- part of the "Occupy" movement.

Buscho was one of them.

Occupiers camp in UC Davis after pepper spraying
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"I had my eyes closed," he says. "My arm was around my girlfriend. I kissed her on the forehead, and then all hell broke loose. My entire body was eventually covered in pepper spray. My entire body. I was coughing up blood. I was puking."

Police say they felt surrounded and had to break up the crowd.

"We were all sitting down, holding hands," Buscho says. "We were all committed to being non-violent."

The students have now defiantly rebuilt their encampment in the middle of campus.

Meanwhile, the UC-Davis chancellor, Linda Katehi, faced a hostile crowd Monday calling for her resignation.

Instead, she said, "I'm here to apologize." She is refusing to step down.

Students plan a campus wide strike Monday.

11 Comments Add a Comment

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BrianInCal says:: First, that student is lying. Pepper spray cannot cause an effect where you bleed internally or puke. It is an inflammatory which causes your exposed areas to react. It would be like getting Tabasco Sauce in your eyes. Even prolonged exposure (hours) create no long-term effect.

Second, this is not a big deal. Everyone is completely over-reacting. While the police may have acted to aggressively, legally, they are probably in the right. They did not use lethal force or permanently harmed. At best, the police should only get a reprimand.; reply

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noloyalisti says:: A am glad this story and the other stories about the police riots are going so viral. It is about time we had a dialogue about what the fear driven right wing has done to America. We are supposed to be protecting freedom and democracy, not choking it. I mean supposedly that is why we are spending trillions inflicting American democracy (which is really the rights of the Top 1% to profit) on the entire world. At the expense of students like these.; reply

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Harden_Tar says:

Dude, you are at an agricultural school smack dab in the middle of farm country. This isn't Berzerkely. When a cop asks you to move a couple of dozen times and you don't, you get what you get. Pack up for the day, hit the pub for a few beers, and come back tomorrow and do it again. You still get whatever message you are trying to convey across and you don't puke blood.


noloyalisti replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; What do you care where and when the revolution starts? I hope it starts somewhere like Wichita or Abilene. These students are speaking up for you and the rest of the 99%.

As long as we mobilize enough people that are sick and tired of the Top 1% rape and pillage of America.

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CMCUSN says:

This wouldn't have happen if the students were in CLASS or WORKING! You know doing something PRODUCTIVE!


Zann-Zel replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; Something productive??? Like standing up for what they believe in and attempting to make a positive change in their country? I'd say that's pretty damned productive to me! "Productive" does not have to mean "making money" - this world is NOT all about money! People ARE more important than money.


sadiedog1 replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; zann-zel :don't you relize that money is about everying ??? all these littly protest arn't going to change anything .if these protesters really want to make a difference, start protesting about welfare and food stamp programs that are bleeding our country . let's make americans start going back to work

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Zann-Zel says:

That cop needs to be fired!

Poor little armed cops felling "surrounded" - by a bunch of unarmed kids sitting down on the ground???

When will they learn that the more they try to suppress free speech the more people will come out to support it! Now they have a crowd of thousands setting up tents - maybe they should have settled for the few kids sitting down on the ground!


CMCUSN replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; No the cops don't need to be fired, these spoild brats need to get their A*s back to class or get a job and stop being a drain on society


pjbfny replies:: linkicon reporticon emailicon; CMCUSN: Do you realise how moronic "get a job" makes you seem? There are at least five people vying for EVERY open job. That's part of the problem. By saying 'get a job' you are actually saying 'I have no idea what is going on in America.'

PS: Students don't go to class all day every day. I go 4 days a week this term, and next term I'll only be going 3. You really need to get a clue before you open your mouth.

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Rodeo_Joe says:: The cop should be unemployed, not on paid Disneyland leave.

His misuse of the pepper spray violated of CA law. Book him.; reply