Man Pepper Sprays Prof During Lecture

...A lecture on vigilantes, ironically
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 27, 2014 3:26 PM CDT
Man Pepper Sprays Prof During Lecture
George Mason University students gather for lunch and collaboration at the George W. Johnson Center's food court in Fairfax, Va., Dec 14, 2010.   (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Imagine you're in the middle of law class lecture on vigilantes, when a man bursts in, jumps on a desk, announces that he's making a "citizen's arrest," and then pepper sprays the professor. Because that's exactly what happened at George Mason University yesterday, and no, it wasn't a planned part of the lecture. The professor, popular libertarian economics blogger and occasional New York Times columnist Tyler Cowen, ran into the hall, and the intruder chased him, ABC 7 reports.

Luckily, a student in the class was an off-duty police officer, and chased down the pepper sprayer, catching him at a building exit. Multiple charges are now pending against the sprayer. Twelve to 15 people, including Cowen, were treated for breathing issues, but Cowen was soon well enough to tweet that he was back to work, Raw Story points out. (More George Mason University stories.)

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