For six hours, 16-year-old Lorenzo Benavidez, Jr. says he was in excruciating pain. He says he spent most of his time in the bathtub icing down his face, trying to take away the burn of pepper spray.
According to Lorenzo, it all started in the pizza line at his high school cafeteria.
"A teacher accused me of eating a pizza, and then trying to get another one," he says.
The pizza was half-eaten, a problem school administrators say they've been battling this year. Lorenzo says he was wrongfully accused and was asked to pay for two slices.
"He can eat pizza, yes. But not that fast," his father says.
"I just put my plate down and walked outside," says Lorenzo. He says he refused to talk to the principal or go to her office. That's when Round Rock Police were called in for back-up.
"We are not going to tolerate any students that are disrespectful to our staff," says R.R.I.S.D spokeswoman, JoyLynn Occhiuzzi.
Round Rock Police officers arrived on campus, ready to put Lorenzo in handcuffs. But Lorenzo says he wouldn't comply.
"He told me, 'One more time, put your hands behind your back, or I'm going to pepper spray you,'" Lorenzo says. He says he still would not comply, even after the warning. The officer followed through, spraying Lorenzo in the face in the school's courtyard.
"It started burning my face, my head, my neck. Then my eyes started burning, and I couldn't see," he says.
Lorenzo says his friends watched from a distance. "Pretty much the whole school was watching."
Lorenzo's father says there are other ways to get students to comply. He also says the officer used excessive force.
"Pepper spraying, that's not an experience for kids," he says. "There's other ways to put handcuffs on people. If they would have pulled his arms back. There's other ways."
Tuesday afternoon, Round Rock Police spokesman, Eric Poteet released a statement saying:
"Our accredited policies and procedures require a thorough administrative review of every incident in which an officer responds to resistance and/or aggression without exception."
Lorenzo says, if he could do it all over again, he would have complied with the officer's orders. However, Lorenzo's parents say they're planning on filing a complaint with Round Rock Police Internal Affairs. In the next few days, they also hope to meet with school administrators to talk about the incident. They say their son should be punished.
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Originally Posted by Ethan Van Sciver
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