A Phoenix police officer assigned to a middle school is under fire after he used pepper spray to break up a fight and handcuffed a combative student in two separate incidents this month.
The officer, who was not identified by the Phoenix Police Department, used pepper spray to break up a fight between three girls after his calls to stop the fight were ignored, Sgt. Tommy Thompson told 12 News.
The fight occurred at Isaac Middle School near 35th Avenue and McDowell Road on Oct. 18. It happened after school and was related to the theft of a cell phone, police said. About 50 students circled around the fight.
The officer sprayed the pepper spray over the top of the crowd. "There were no known complaints of the limited exposure to the OC spray," Thompson added.
After that, the students dispersed and the officer was able to take the two girls into custody. A third girl, 13, was also taken into custody for allegedly instigating the fight.
The girls were later released and charges were submitted, which the department said is normal protocol.
The second incident involving the officer assigned to Isaac Middle School occurred shortly after 11 a.m. Friday, when he handcuffed a girl for approximately 10 minutes after police said she fought another girl and then argued with a school administrator.
Thompson said the officer handcuffed the girl after she pulled away from him and began struggling to get away. She was taken to the administrative office, where she calmed down and was uncuffed and released to her family.
Charges will also be submitted in that incident, Thompson added.
James Milam with Isaac School District No. 5 said in a statement to 12 News that police said proper protocol was followed but the district is "in the process of conducting its investigations."
"In the Isaac School District, student safety is our top priority. We will continue to work with all parties involved to ensure all students feel safe while at school," part of the statement read.
Puente Arizona, Black Lives Matter, Poder in Action and other Phoenix activist groups called on the school to remove the officer, who the groups identified as Philip Vavrinec, from the campus.
Vavrinec is also identified as the school resource officer on the school's website.
It also wants an independent investigation into civil rights abuses by school resource officers at the middle school and called on school officials to "change the culture" of how they deal with conflict by adding more counselors.
The groups claim that Vavrinec gave no warning before he used pepper spray on the students in the first incident.
“What Officer Vavrinec did endangered the lives and wellness of not only students but faculty as well. It is deeply disturbing that the school district is condoning his actions through their silence and failure to notify parents about what took place,” said Maxima Guerrero, a Puente organizer.
“This is not how we should be treating young people in Phoenix. We must restore trust in Isaac Middle School and build an environment on campus that is responding to the needs of students, teachers and its community.”