Dublin: Pepper Spray Hazards To Health Exposed: UPDATED

You probably saw the videos of campus police pepper-spraying Occupy movement protestors at the University of California-Davis over the weekend.As the WSJ reports, the chief of the campus police and two police officers have now been placed on administrative leave following the incident.
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Getting pepper spray in the kisser doesn’t look like much fun. But does it have health hazards?

Yes, says a 1999 paper published by the North Carolina Medical Journal and titled, appropriately, Health Hazards of Pepper Spray.

Oleoresin capsicum is an “oily extract of pepper plans of the genus Capsicum,” the paper says. It notes that the capsaicinoid content of extracts used in pepper sprays can vary widely from brand to brand, as can the concentration of the extract used. But it says “there is no real scientific basis for the claim that OC sprays are relatively safe.”

As the paper and this Speakeasy Science blog post by Deborah Blum (which cites the paper) point out, pepper spray is far more potent than even the hottest of hot peppers. Blum writes that commercial-grade pepper spray is listed at between 2 million and 5.3 million Scoville units — a measure of “hotness” that hinges on capsaicin content. Compare that to between 200,000 and 350,000 Scoville units for habanero peppers.

The NCMJ paper notes that when the skin is exposed to OC spray, people can experience “tingling, intense burning pain, swelling, redness, and, occasionally, blistering.” If it gets in the eyes, it can cause pain and stinging — and temporary blindness that lasts 30 minutes or so. According to this paper from 2000, published in Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science, the “immediate changes in mechanical and chemical sensitivity” can persist for up for a week but that a single exposure doesn’t appear to harm the eye tissues.

Respiratory exposure can be more dangerous, with responses including “burning of the throat, wheezing, dry cough, shortness of breath, gagging, gasping, inability to breathe or speak .. and rarely, cyanosis [blue or purple skin or mucous membranes], apnea and respiratory arrest,” the NCMJ paper says.

Blum writes that the sprays “pose a genuine risk  to people with asthma and other respiratory conditions.”

We also found a couple of articles on pepper spray published by the National Institute of Justice, the research, development and evaluation agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. One from 2001, titled Pepper Spray’s Effects on a Suspect’s Ability to Breathe, exposed 34 study subjects to OS, some of whom had a history of smoking, lung disease or respiratory inhaler medication use. It found no evidence of “respiratory compromise” even in those subjects, but notes due to the small number of people involved, its findings aren’t definitive.

Gardai are open to a corporate risk of being sued, in a raft of civil actions as members are not properly trained to use batons and pepper sprays. The Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors have claimed that about 
6,000 gardai are not certified to use either their (ASP) batons or thir pepper sprays. 
That situation opened up gardai to a corporate risk of being sued, AGSI president Tim Galvin told the final day of the recent AGSI annual conference in Killarney.
He said that members have to be re-certified every three years to the weapons, which are often deployed in serious public order situations.
"You are trained in the use of personal protection equipment, which is the (ASP) baton and pepper spray. "That (training) has to be certified by the company that issue it and (you) must be re-certified in training every three years". 
He said that the last time that (he) was certified in the use of the weapons was in 2010 and that he should have been re-certified last year (in 2013).
The re-certification process takes just a few hours and effectively goes through the safe and recommended use of either pepper spray or the (ASP) baton.
Pepper spray, also known as OC spray and capsicum spray, is a chemical that aggravates the protective layer of the eyes, causing immediate tearing, pain, and in extreme cases, temporary blindness. Pepper spray can be 
used by individiduals for safety and by law enforcement officers for crowd control.
A (sprayed) person will find
 their eyes immediately closing, followed by uncontrollable tearing, coughing, possibly choking plus an extreme burning sensation on any exposed skin and mucous membranes.
A discharge from the nasal mucous membranes will almost always be experienced by someone encountering pepper spray.
The effects of pepper spray are more pronounced with the elderly or someone with existing heart or respiratory problems,  if the situation allows, caution should exercised before deployment.
While in theory, there are no long-lasting effects to pepper spray, those who've experienced the extreme inflammatory effects and burning sensation, would beg to differ.
I personally have been sprayed with pepper spray while taking photographs during a protest rally outside Leinster House, Dublin so I know exactly how it feels. This was not a tiny stream of spray that grazed my eyes. It 
was a full blast pepper spray that hit me square in the face from a few feet away.
Imagine, this stuff hitting you right in the eyes, mouth and nose. It not only burns these mucous membranes, but it feels as if your skin is on fire.
What's happening to your eyes, and why they involuntarily close is due to the dilation of the capillaries in the eye itself.
A Person will experience about 40 to 50 minutes of bloodshot eyes, tearing, and overall discomford.
This will occur whether or not they were wearing eyeglasses. However, if contact lenses are being worn, they should be removed as soon as possible.
Since pepper spray irritates the lining of the nose and throat, causing difficulty breathing, there have been reports of lightheadedness, confusion, disorientation and loss of muscle control. While these may be side-effects, it 
can be more directly attributed to the lack of oxygen or the stress of being sprayed.
Using pepper spray irresponsibly can incur criminal or civil liability. Spraying an innocent victim in the face can be a crime. Much like a punch in the face, it would be charged as assault or battery in most jurisdictions. 
The justification for using pepper sprays must either be self-defense from personal injury or an arrest situation, and the force must be reasonable under the circumstances. For example, the law says you can't lawfully spray 
someone in the face for using obscene language or because you are simply afraid because they look mean.
Before you can use pepper spray, for example, there is a language that you must get across (to the person/persons about to be sprayed) and there is a distance you have to be from the person to prevent the spray from 
causing serious harm.
Defense Spray Use in California (Tear Gas)
In California you can get a state penalty of up to a thousand dollar fine and/or up to three years in prison for misuse of tear gas and you would also have a felony conviction on your record for the rest of your life. 
Some conditions that qualify as misuse of tear gas including using it on people in anger, spraying it as a joke or tear gas possessed by prohibited persons. Those who are legally prohibited from possessing tear gas includes minors, 
drug addicts or persons convicted of felonies and assault, although these people can procure tear gas with very few barriers.
In California any legally purchased canister of tear gas that is going to be possessed or used must have a label stating the following: “WARNING: The use of this substance or device for any purpose other than self-defense is 
a crime under the law. The contents are dangerous--use with care.” For a canister of tear gas the maximum legal weight is 2.5 ounces or 70 grams of OC, CS or CN. For civlian use CR is illegal.
Recently, The Director of Public Prosecutions has directed the withdrawal of charges against two gardaí accused of pepper spraying a teenager.
Garda Brendan Dowling, 46, and Garda Fiona Sheehan, 27, had appeared before Cork District Court, charged with assault causing harm to a 16-year-old boy on Cook Street in May 2012.
Both had pleaded not guilty.
When told by the State solicitor for Cork city, Frank Nyham, of the instruction from the DPP, Judge Olann Kelleher said that on the evidence he had heard to date, there was nothing to suggest that either officer had used 
their pepper spray in any manner other than in accordance with the law.
Judge Kelleher said no one should underestimate the difficult job facing gardaí in patrolling the streets.
Speaking afterwards, and stressing he was speaking in a civilian capacity, Mr Dowling said the decision to bring a charge against him and his colleague over the use of pepper spray had serious implications for every member 
of the gardaí trying to do their job.
He said he believed the case was sending out the wrong message.
If they had been convicted for using equipment issued to them to help incapacitate someone who was at risk to themselves and to others, he said it would have had serious implications for every garda.
In 2008 Garda Sergeants and Inspectors had voted unanimously to demand the introduction of pepper spray to deal with violent suspects and prisoners.
The introduction of the spray was recommended by the Garda Inspectorate but the Garda Commissioner had still not adopted it.
Fachtna Murphy said the 'jury' was out on the issue. Later, Gardaí were issued with pepper spray canisters to enable them to deal with the increasing number of attacks on unarmed officers.
Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern announced that the Government has sanctioned the supply of the less-than-lethal weapon to all uniformed and unarmed gardaí.
The decision was taken following approval by Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy.
It was originally recommended by the Garda Inspectorate Kathleen O'Toole following her consideration of the Barr Tribunal Report.
It follows concerns about the safety of unarmed uniformed gardaí who are usually first to respond to violent or critical incidents.
The number of attacks on unarmed gardaí doubled between 2005 and 2007 and Ms O'Toole recommended they be supplied with pepper spray.
Commissioner Murphy agreed and Mr Ahern sanctioned the measure following Cabinet approval.
He announced that all unarmed gardaí will, be issued with the aerosol-type can that will spray a liquid containing chilli-pepper.
The cost of the measure, estimated at around €250,000  came from the garda budget.
However, on the 18th September 2013, what  was intended as a peaceful protest against austerity as the Dail reopened for business. The demo at the gates of Leinster House ended in ugly confrontation. A minority of 
extremist republican gatecrashers grabbed the headlines, tainting the peaceful civil demonstrators and hijacking attention from their cause.
With another major protest planned for Budget Day on October 15 2013, activists wanted to reclaim the right to peacefully vent their discontent at the gates of their national parliament.
According to Finbar Markey, of the group Dundalk Says No, the protest outside the Dail on September 18 was organised through social media by activist networks around the country.
"They're groups of people in local areas who came together to form independent groups," he said. "Some of them called themselves anti-eviction groups. Others called themselves anti-austerity groups. Some just didn't 
decide to have a name at all. They are the people who are voiceless, who are not voting in Ireland. They are people who don't want extremism, who don't want violence, but they feel voiceless at the moment."
But it also attracted established groups such as the National Women's Council, the Campaign Against Household and Water Taxes and People Before Profit.
Protesters gathered at the gates of Leinster House from 5am. As veteran marchers, they felt the atmosphere this time was different. (why?).
"Initially, when you got there, you saw the concrete barriers straight away. That was something different," said Eibhlin Ni Riain, also of Dundalk Says No.
"From the outset, it was a different experience from being on protests before. They (gardai) didn't interact with us, they didn't have the craic. It was different from anything I'd ever experienced. When we stood there and 
tried to talk to them . . . they seemed to be stressed and aggressive – that's not a word I'd like to use, but it seemed to be their attitude."
By 10am, tension was mounting. Chanting grew louder and some protesters took off on impromptu marches, and activists claim gardai began using pepper-spray to quell the crowd.
According to Mr Markey, four members of extremist group Republican Voice bearing flags turned up at lunchtime, joining the hundreds of protesters already there.
"They were quickly asked to lower their flags by anti-eviction protesters, something which they refused to do," he said. "From that point on, they were isolated by the crowds and had no organisational hand or part in 
carrying out the peaceful marches that eventually formed the sit-down protest on O'Connell Bridge.
"It is true that they were opportunistic in that they marched near to the front of the procession; however, their tiny numbers were overpowered by the hundreds of peaceful, non-party, non-republican protesters with their 
banners and posters.
Another Dundalk Says No activist, Mark Fitzsimons, said: "There was a small number of people there intent on causing trouble. You are talking about 20 people, and at this stage there were around 500 or 600 people 
outside the Dail."
A group of between 10 and 20 tried to rush the barrier. Gardai pushed forward. Mr Fitzsimons said he and two others were pepper-sprayed, one of whom suffered an epileptic fit. Fearing trouble, the crowd was 
encouraged by facilitators to march on. Protesters ended up on O'Connell Bridge, blocking the passage of rush-hour motorists and causing traffic chaos.
Ms Ni Riain said: "There was frustration at not being able to stand outside the Dail. You are being caged in. So, because it was peaceful, it was better to take people out of that situation and to march."
The group acknowledge the rush-hour disruption was regrettable. According to Mr Fitzsimons, the same people who complained about the traffic were complaining about austerity.
Mr Markey said they would continue with their protest on October 15.
"We will march, but we will never raise our hand, and if batons are raised to us, they can beat us, but we will still march forward, because that is what you do," he said.