Pepper Spray Cop John Pike, who pepper sprayed a group of peaceful protestors at a 2011 Occupy Event at UC Davis, was awarded a $38,000 settlement for psychiatric injury.

An image of Pepper spray cop John Pike from the UC Davis Occupy protests went viral, and his body was photoshopped onto many other images, including famous paintings such as the Mona Lisa.

After the pepper spray incident, John Pike was put on paid administrative leave by the University.  After 8 months, he was fired.
Pepper spray cop John Pike's settlement is due to "moderate psychiatric distress".  

Pepper spray cop John Pike, a former US Marine, faces "continuing and significant internal and external stress with respect to resolving and solving the significant emotional upheavals that have occurred," according to psychiatrist Richard Lieberman. 

Students involved in the UC Davis Occupy protest also received settlements from the university.  

Watch Pepper Spray Cop John Pike Video Here:

Former California Supreme Court Justice Cruz Reynoso lead an investigatory panel that found fault with police and university administrators for their handling of the protest.  According to the panel, Pike did not need to use pepper spray and that he stood too close to protesters to use it safely.

However, despite the conclusions of the panel, workers compensation law requires workers to be compensated for injuries even if they acted as an aggressor.

Some are unhappy about the settlement being given to pepper spray cop John Pike. Bernie Goldsmith, a California lawyers, says that the pepper spray cop settlement "sends a clear message to the next officer nervously facing off with a group of passive, unarmed students: Go on ahead. Brutalize them. Trample their rights. You will be well taken care of."