Video shows chaos as police say parent sprayed pepper spray in classroom
CHICAGO (CBS) -- New video shows the chaos last week as police said a parent sprayed pepper spray in a Near West Side high school classroom.
As CBS 2's Jermont Terry reported, the incident this past Friday afternoon led to chaos in the crowded classroom at Chicago Bulls College Prep, 2040 W. Adams St., and sent people to the hospital.
We got a glimpse Monday night of just how crazy it got when police said a parent decided to resort to a dangerous method in her child's classroom.
As fight broke out in a classroom in the school around 12:10 p.m. Friday. Punches were thrown, hair was pulled – and as seen in the video, everyone scatters when police say Anita Wilkens, 36, pulls out pepper spray and uses it.
The pepper spray is seen right there in her hand.
Wilkens is accused of coming into the classroom without permission after meeting with the staff minutes earlier. The students continued fighting - and even when staff members tried to break up the brawl, police said the mother continued to use the dangerous chemical spray on them.
Staff members were finally able to separate the teens and get the angry parent out of the building. But that only escalated Wilkens. Dispatch audio said she was calling others to come to the school after she was outside.
By the time police and emergency crews arrived, students and staff who came into contact with the chemical spray were having problems breathing – along with irritation in the eyes.
Two staffers were taken to Stroger Hospital of Cook County by ambulance. The school said a student was later taken to the hospital by their family.
As for Wilkens, she was seen on video getting arrested. She is accused of instigating a fight and forcing everyone to take safety precautions. The school initiated a soft lockdown to ensure everyone's safety.
Wilkens is charged with two misdemeanor counts of criminal trespass and reckless conduct causing bodily harm.
She is due in court later this month.
