Superintendent: No Pepper Spray In Boston Schools

The head of Boston's public school system says school resource officers will not be armed with pepper spray.

Interim Superintendent John McDonough said Wednesday that strong opposition to the proposed new policy during recent public meetings has convinced him the plan might "drive a wedge" between students and school police, no matter how well-crafted or well-intentioned.

McDonough says he's directed the district's Chief of Safety Services not to issue or authorize pepper spray. A Thursday public forum and another scheduled for next week will also be cancelled, a district spokesman said.

In 2006, the district negotiated a contract with school police officers calling for developing a pepper spray policy. City Councilors earlier Wednesday called for more public hearings on the proposal, which some criticized as "simply absurd."