Parent arrested, charged with assault on a child in Asheville High School incident

A woman is out of jail on a written promise after a Jan. 12 incident at Asheville High School when she allegedly "sprayed mace" on a student, according to a Jan. 14 Asheville Police Department news release.

Tiffany Pickens was charged with assault on a child after she used the defensive chemical irritant on a student following a fight, according to the news release.

APD school resource officers responded to a fight between students in the cafeteria of Asheville High School Wednesday, according to the release.

Pickens, 34, was picking up her own child after the fight. Police reported that was when she sprayed a student.

EMS responded to check on the welfare of the student, according to the release, which didn't note his or her condition following the alleged assault.

She was arrested and then released on a written promise, guaranteeing she would appear in court on a specific date.

Related: Spiking COVID-19 infections decimate Asheville City Schools staff; forces system to close

Reached for comment, Asheville City Schools spokesperson Ashley-Michelle Thublin said the school had none.

Pickens could not be reached for comment.

The incident happened two days before the school system made the decision to shut down because of spiking COVID-19 infections.

Andrew Jones is Buncombe County government and health care reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow or reach him at @arjonesreports on Facebook and Twitter. Email him at arjones@citizentimes.com.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Woman arrested, charged with child assault in Asheville High incident