The situation was particularly tense given the national debate over policing and whether black people are more vulnerable to violence from police. That debate has escalated in intensity in recent weeks, after high-profile shooting deaths of black men by white officers, followed by deadly attacks on police by black men in Texas and Louisiana.

University officials discussed the results of an investigation with reporters last week and screened video from officers’ body-worn cameras. But they delayed public release of the video after showing it to students and recent graduates who had been at the party, at the students’ request. After the screening, Mitchell said he told them that he was “terribly embarrassed and humiliated by the actions of our officers.”

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The investigation concluded that the use of force fell within the department’s guidelines, but that a second round of spraying was done improperly (some officers were sprayed by accident.) The officer who led the response was suspended for 80 hours without pay for overall conduct unbecoming an officer. The department will review its use of force, and every officer will get bias and diversity training.

The student government is planning a town hall meeting for the new school year with U-Md. Department of Public Safety Chief David Mitchell.

“We will be working to structure this town hall so that students and officers come away with a better relationship,” Katherine Swanson, the president of the student government, said Monday night. “This is only the beginning of many plans we have to work to better these relations on our campus. After seeing the video, it’s very clear to us that our campus and its police department must work to ensure this never happens again.”

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She said last week that she had not heard from students who felt the police response was justified, and said that the incident alarmed many people on campus.

“I think it was upsetting for anyone who watched it,” Swanson said Monday night. “It wasn’t pleasant to watch. It made me feel, now more than ever, that we really need to work on improving relations between students and police, especially students of color.”

The incident began when a 911 call summoned officers to a party on campus, and people outside the party — people denied entry to the celebration, whom Mitchell said will be given a criminal summons for their false report — said there was a fight inside, perhaps with someone armed with a bat.

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Students answering the door replied cheerfully to the officer’s knock, explaining that it was a graduation celebration, and denied that there was a fight there or any trouble. As officers ordered people to disperse, the scene became increasingly confused and chaotic. When an officer was surrounded by 10 upset people, one of whom was being restrained by others, an officer used pepper spray to break up the crowd.

As a medic was treating people who had been sprayed, people began crowding around, some yelling at police and others trying to calm the situation. When the medic asked for help, police again used pepper spray.

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Mitchell said last week that it never should have gotten to that point — that officers had worsened the situation, rather than tempering it.

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A student and her brother were arrested that night when they didn’t comply with officers, but charges have been dropped.