[4] At least 80 arrests were made on September 24,[5] Videos which showed several penned-in female demonstrators being hit with pepper spray by a police official were widely disseminated, sparking controversy.

After an investigation, Deputy Inspector Bologna, who makes an annual salary of $154,000, was transferred to a different station, and lost two weeks vacation time over the incident.

[7] Public attention to the pepper-sprayings resulted in a spike of news media coverage, a pattern that was to be repeated in the coming weeks following confrontations with police.

[9][10] On October 25, 2011, Scott Olsen, a 24-year-old Iraq War veteran suffered a skull fracture caused by a projectile that witnesses believed was a tear gas or smoke canister fired by the police.

[20] Kayvan Sabeghi, a 32-year-old local business owner and former U.S. Army Ranger, was hit with a baton numerous times by a police officer then arrested on the evening of November 2, 2011.

[21] While in police custody, he complained of severe pain and asked for medical treatment but was transferred to a hospital only after 14–18 hours of imprisonment.

[23] On the November 2 protests, Officer John Hargraves was filmed having placed black tape over his name on his police uniform.

[24] In January 2012, a US District Court described the events as "the most serious level of misconduct" and noted that it is a crime for officers to conceal their names or badge numbers.

[27] On November 9, 2011, students and professors at UC Berkeley participated in a series of "teach-outs" around campus, a noon rally and march.

[28] Video footage of the afternoon confrontation shows police using batons and dragging two protesters by the hair, one of whom was UC Berkeley English professor Celeste Langan.

"[33] Robert Hass, a UC Berkeley professor of poetry and former United States Poet Laureate, wrote about the police response in a November 19 New York Times opinion piece entitled "Poet-Bashing Police": the deputies in the cordon surged forward and, using their clubs as battering rams, began to hammer at the bodies of the line of students.

"[36] The 84-year-old woman, Dorli Rainey, is a former mayoral candidate and retired school teacher who has been active in City government on education and transportation issues since the 1960s.

In 2009, Rainey, then 82 years old, made a brief run for Seattle Mayor before withdrawing from the race citing her age: "I am old and should learn to be old, stay home, watch TV and sit still."

[38][39] Dorli Rainey was notably photographed Archived February 28, 2012, at the Wayback Machine as she was being carried away by friends after having been hit with the police's chemical spray.

[44] Bystanders recorded the incident with cell phone cameras, while members of the crowd chanted "Shame on you" and "Let them go" at the police officers.

[51] Lieutenant John Pike and another unnamed UC Davis Police officer were placed on administrative leave shortly after the incident.

[57] The National Lawyers Guild of Northern California alleges a number of human rights abuses, including hundreds of unlawful arrests, physical assaults.

[59] Eyewitnesses reported that the police repeatedly hit a 24-year-old woman, "causing a massive bump to her forehead, as well as multiple cuts and bruises".