On November 18, 2011, Lieutenant John Pike, a University of California police officer, approached lawfully assembled student protesters seated peacefully on a campus quad in Davis and ordered them to disperse. When they refused, he attacked them with a chemical agent that causes pain, temporary blindness, and breathing difficulties. A subsequent investigation found that Pike’s use of force was “objectively unreasonable”; that he was neither trained nor authorized to carry the weapon he used to dispense pepper spray; that he abdicated his duties as an incident commander; and that he wasn’t alone in sharing responsibility for the brutal incident, which disgraced UC Davis in the eyes of many who watched it.
Among other culprits, the investigation blamed UC Davis Chancellor Linda Katehi, who bore some culpability for the decision to remove students from the quad, the dubious timing of the operation, and the failure to convey that force should not be used. She said at the time that she took “full responsibility” for what happened. Ever since, student activists have been calling for her resignation.California’s median household income is $61,933. Assistant professors at UC Davis earn about $80,000.
“After resigning Tuesday as UC Davis chancellor under a cloud of controversy, Linda P.B. Katehi will take advantage of a University of California perk that allows campus leaders to receive chancellor-level pay with few responsibilities for one year,” the Sacramento Bee reports. “Katehi will continue to receive her salary of $424,360 plus retirement and health benefits, but she will not have to teach classes in her transition year, after which she plans to become a UC Davis engineering professor.”