Ohio police pepper spray high school football players in shocking attack as parents are left seething

Missouri parents were left stunned after police used pepper spray on high school football players as tempers flared during the end of a game. 

Players from Cardinal Ritter College Prep, a St. Louis area private school, traveled to Massillon, Ohio to face Washington High School's football team on October 3. 

However, the field descended into chaos as following Washington's 28-14 victory when the congratulatory handshakes swiftly unraveled into a heated exchange, forcing police to intervene. 

Yet, despite their claims that they were attempting the deescalate the situation, the officers from Massillon Police Department senselessly used extreme measures, deploying pepper spray on the teenagers. 

In a clip from the Massillon Washington Tigers' win, tensions appeared to flare as players from both teams began to square up to one another as handshakes were exchanged. 

Officers then descended on the heated scene and were captured spraying mace in the faces of the Cardinal Ritter players, who were dressed in white uniforms. 

The visiting players quickly fled, running for the sidelines while one player appeared to have dropped to the ground. 

The cops remained patrolling the field as the Cardinal Ritter players huddled on the sideline before being herded off the turf by the heavy police presence. 

Cardinal Ritter is now helping families and witnesses file formal complaints with the Massillon Police Department, the school's president Tamiko Armstead said in a statement shared online. 

'At the conclusion of the game, several of our students were maced by the Massillon Police Department, and our coaches were forced to remove a Washington High School player from our sideline to de-escalate the situation,' Armstead wrote. 'It is completely unacceptable for a high school football game to end in this confrontation. 

'The parents of the affected students are understandably very upset, as we all should be.

'In my capacity as President of Cardinal Ritter, I have attempted to address this directly with Washington High School Athletic director and the school's abd district's leadership, asking for their support in pushing for an investigation into the police officers' action. There does not appear to be a desire or willingness to help with that effort.' 

She also reportedly contacted Massillon City Schools Superintendent Paul Salvino to express her anger over the situation and has reached out to the Ohio High School Athletic Association about any possible action it can take.

Meanwhile, one furious mother, whose son DJ was maced, has told 19 News that she is planning to file a civil rights complaint against Massillon Police through the Department of Justice. 

'He called me screaming like 'mom, they just maced me' and I was like 'what, what is going on?' Ashley Ashburn told the outlet. 

'It immediately made him drop to his knees, and his eyes were burning, he couldn't breathe,' she added.

However, Massillon Police have maintained that its officers were attempting to deescalate the situation as they claimed the Cardinal Ritter players 'charged' at their opponents. 

'Unfortunately, the conclusion of the game brought with it multiple physical altercations on the field between both teams. Team staff members, coaches, and Massillon police officers were forced to intervene and separate players during the post-game "hand-shake",' a statement from the department read. 

'Officers gave lawful orders on multiple occasions for Cardinal Ritter players to leave the field and head toward their locker room. The verbal commands were an attempt to de-escalate the pushing and shoving occurring. Those commands were ignored.

'At one point during the incident, a Massillon player's facemask was grabbed; he was surrounded, and then chased by Cardinal Ritter players. Officers once again ordered the visiting team off the field.' 

At this point the Massillon Tigers' band and cheerleaders had reportedly entered the field, which 'concerned officers as they continued to order Ritter players off the field.'

'The Ritter players again charged at Massillon players who were now near the band. This was an unfortunate and difficult situation for officers who, during the entirety of the incident, attempted to restore order. Ultimately, two Massillon police officers deployed pepper spray, which was effective,' the statement added. 

Superintendent Salvino claimed that a Massillon administrator had overheard comments made on the Cardinal Ritter sideline during the final minutes of the game which they believed warranted a police presence on the field at the final whistle. 

'In the last four minutes of the game, we heard things being said by the opponent's staff. We sent a couple of security personnel to the sidelines,' Salvino told The Repository. 'We wanted to make sure the game ended and the teams went their separate ways.'

He alleged that Massillon players had attempted to remove themselves from the situation when approached by members of their opposition. He claimed that one Massillon Tiger was circled by Cardinal Ritter players with both sides seemingly on the verge of engaging in an altercation. It was at this point, he claimed, that coaches and school administrators stepped in.