Juvenile arrested for pepper-spraying Carrs

PALMER -- Palmer police said Tuesday they have arrested a 17-year-old Palmer resident for releasing pepper spray in the Palmer Carrs store Feb. 12.

The store was briefly evacuated after the 1:30 p.m. incident. The juvenile was charged with third-degree criminal mischief, police said.

Arleen McCarver of the Butte was shopping inside the store with her daughter when store personnel announced that everyone should leave at once.

"We were getting a few groceries and looking at the Valentine's section when they started yelling," McCarver said. "Doors at both ends of the store were opened. I was coughing. It hit me a little while before I got to the door. It weakened me."

McCarver said she's familiar with the smell of pepper spray and she doubted that's what was released.

"It definitely wasn't pepper spray," she said. "It had a gas smell."

McCarver said she still felt the effects on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Carrs district manager Glenn Peterson of Anchorage said he's convinced it was pepper spray. Store personnel took precautions, he said, by not only rushing employees and customers outside but also by tossing out contents of the salad bar.

It was the second pepper-spray release to evacuate a Carrs store in the Valley within a few weeks. Recently, spray was released at the Wasilla Carrs outlet.

Peterson emphasized that Carrs officials don't consider the action funny.

"What we used to think of as a prank years ago we have to take seriously these days," he said. "We will prosecute if we can."

Contact Steve Kadel at steve.kadel@frontiersman.com.