A Carson woman who is accused of attacking a group of teenagers at a local Taco Bell with pepper spray is now facing up to six years in state prison.
L.A. County Dist. Atty. George Gascón announced Thursday that Nicole Coleman, 36, was charged with one felony count of assault with a deadly weapon, three misdemeanor counts of child abuse and one misdemeanor count of use of tear gas.
“While I’m relieved that none of the young victims suffered significant injuries, the nature of this attack is deeply troubling,” Gascón said in a news release. “As adults, we have a responsibility to be role models for our young people, and violence in any form is never an acceptable response.”
The incident took place on Sept. 11 at 5:42 p.m., according to the district attorney’s office, and was captured in a video that rapidly spread online.
The video shows a woman pepper-spraying a group of Carson High School students and yelling obscenities. A brawl then breaks out and punches are exchanged between the minors and the woman. The woman is seen throwing one teenager to the ground and striking the same minor with a laptop.
“This is not something that they deserve,” Vanessa Rodriguez, a mother of one of the teens, told KCAL on Sept. 11.
The teenagers who were there told KCAL that the conflict began last year with two girls fighting over a boy, and then escalated dramatically last week when one of the mothers came to Taco Bell wielding pepper spray.
“These girls are so traumatized and afraid of everything that’s happening,” Rodriguez added.
Coleman was arrested that evening by the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department and on Wednesday pleaded not guilty during an arraignment in Los Angeles County Superior Court in Compton.
“Our office will continue to hold those accountable who endanger the safety and well-being of others in our community,” Gascón said, “especially our youth.”