Gulfport Cop Shoots Chained Dog

http://www.sunherald.com/2011/12/14/3634836/police-confirm-officer-shot-dog.html

What's going on with the cops shooting dogs that are chained up?
The article says this is the second one in a year.

U'd think pepper spray would be more appropriate

And to top it off, their were several people within"3'"? Kind of like the woman who shot her husband trying to kill a dog.
Fluid operation that ended with the husband dead (I think I read that in a post).
No needed to kill the dog if it was changed. Take him to the pound, if he acted aggresive while there, put him down. An officer shooting a dog three feet from citizens was a Dumn Azz. Lawsuit waiting to happen.

sidroski wrote:And to top it off, their were several people within"3'"? Kind of like the woman who shot her husband trying to kill a dog.
Fluid operation that ended with the husband dead (I think I read that in a post).
No needed to kill the dog if it was changed. Take him to the pound, if he acted aggresive while there, put him down. An officer shooting a dog three feet from citizens was a Dumn Azz. Lawsuit waiting to happen.

not to mention a good way to get dead

I don't even like dogs and it seeems like the wrong thing to do. If I am armed and a dog is not restrained and acts really aggressive, I will probably shoot it. I was badly bitten while riding my bike, as a child of 9, and the dog could not be found. I had the Pastuer treatment for rabies. 28 shots in the abdomen in 28 days. That has turned me sour on aggressive animals for the last 60 years.

Doug

Was no need for it...I hope the department gets their a$$ sued off.

The dog was chained. No threat to him at all.
It's like the cops who tasered the 82 year old granny in her sick bed cause she cussed them out & told them to get outta her house.
This kind of stuff has got to stop!

In Hattiesburg in the mid 1970s my college roommate was out riding his bicycle one day
and rode down a cul de sac street and had to slow down to turn around without stopping
and in a quite minor way rode into then out of the yard of one house, when he did the
owner went nuts and unleashed a pit bull mixture and set it after him once he was clear
of the yard and back in the street, the dog outran him on the bike and bit the hades out
of his upper left thigh almost to his buttocks. Once he got treated at the USM clinic he
filed charges against the dog's owner and when it came to trial the lying louse owner
actually had the cojones to swear under oath, "the dog did NOT bite the boy" so when
the DA put him on the stand, all he had to do was, he was prepared for this with a
swimsuit under his jeans, to stand up, drop his jeans and turn around so the jury
could see the bite marks and stitches that were still raw and red. the judge in city
court tossed the woman in the lockup and the DA filed perjury charges against her
as well as violation of the local leash law, my roommate sued for medical costs and
damages and won but of course could never collect anything. but the city of Hattiesburg
did put that dog down immediately as violating the one dog one bite and you're done
rule they had in place at the time.

Let me preface what I am about to say with this:
If he shot that dog KNOWING that it was chained and not a threat... hang him out to dry. There is ABSOLUTELY no excuse for that by any means.

Having said that... reading that in-depth article of a whopping 9 or 10 lines (that does come from the press, which I consider most to be liberal losers, and someone apparently at a drug bust) I personally cannot determine the situation that officer was in. There is absolutely no way to even come close to determining the real situation. And it certainly doesn't state if the dog was just sitting there scratching itself or if it was running at the officer.

It simply enrages me at some of the comments on that site (not this thread). One person says it was OBVIOUS the cop wasn't in danger. Really? How do they decipher that from 9 lines in a newspaper?

Was the dog charging at the officer and he didn't know it was chained? Even if I saw it had a chain but it was charging me, how do you know how LONG that chain is? Do you wait until the jaws close on you to say "oh, guess I'll have to shoot it now"?

As far as someone being 3 feet from the dog when shots were fired, we are taking the word of someone that was involved in a search warrant execution, talking to the news media. Really? And If they were 2 feet from my right, when the dog was 1 foot from ME... that would still place them 3 feet from the dog. Would I shoot? Hell yes. And that is giving them the benefit of doubt that they are actually telling the truth.

And she was begging him not to shoot... that the dog never hurt anyone? Ever been in the middle of a search warrant with all the neighbors and kin in the house and/or yard yelling at once? "Don't hurt my baby, he never did nuthin'. Why ya'll harassin' us? Etc Etc" You can barely make out your own team's voices and what they are saying at times. Much less hear and believe something from someone that is associated with the Warrant you are serving.

Pepper Spray? I think not if I have a dog charging me. And if he isn't charging or a threat, there is no need for spraying the poor animal either. That chit is horribly painful, at least it is to ME. Our team encounters dogs all the time. We use caution when time allows full assessment of the animal and never harm them unless there is no other choice. Sometimes everything works out.... sometimes it doesn't.

It was a Narcotics Warrant. Not a warrant for not appearing in court or for unpaid fines. We are talking Drugs here. Where there are drugs there are a LOT of times Dogs.... to guard against theft of their drugs and money. Plain and simple. They are not pets, nor are they nice. I don't care what the people tell you. Been there done that, too many times.

Again, if that officer shot that dog knowing there was no threat... rake him over the coals. If I had to bet money, I would bet that:
Yes, it was on a chain.
Yes, it was charging at him.
No, they were not 3 feet away.
No, you don't have time to read the newspaper, sip coffee and evaluate every little thing in the middle of a warrant being executed. You have seconds to access a million different inputs to your senses and react. I wish we had more than seconds, I really do.

It's unfortunate either way that the dog died. I love dogs and anyone that knows me knows that. I would feel horrible if the dog was on a chain and I didn't realize it or couldn't tell how long that chain was as he was bounding towards me. But I would not hesitate to put him down instead of waiting to see and end up with a dog's teeth in me. I'm going home to my family at the end of the night.

But really, who put that dog and everyone else in danger at that place? The fact of the whole matter is that these dealers put EVERYONE and EVERY THING in jeopardy with the life they CHOOSE to live. And I would bet that everyone at that residence and on that premise KNEW of the activity going on. There are still a lot of good people in the areas that our team works. Many more than I even realized before. And they can TELL you which are the drug houses. The people that stay there and hang out there.... They know.

Sorry for the long rant. I'm not defending those POS's that use their badge to make themselves feel "big" and do what they want. They are the minority. You have bad apples in everything, I wish it weren't so. It's just not as simple as reading 9 lines of rhetoric and saying the officer is guilty.

10-7

Well said Mr. Clean, I have been through many doors and over many fences and encountered dogs multiple times during narcotics related search warrants. And yes on more than one occasion we have had to put a dog down for safety reasons. As you said, there are a million different things running through your head and you don't have time to read 9 lines and analyze the situation. At the moment you just do what you have to do to protect yourself and other team members.

Having been in countless situations similar to what this officer was facing there is no way that I would try and pass judgement on this story with no more facts than they have.

Yes, there are 'bad apples' in everything.
But.... where are the 'good' apples? Where are the good cops who should be getting rid of the bad cops in their departments? Why is there still that thin blue line & all of them stick together? Why aren't they saying something?

And so if they are dealers or whatever, that justifies killing their dog? Why is it that cops are shooting family dogs so often these days? In no knock busts at the wrong houses, with the dogs running AWAY from them?

A Utah police officer is being called a hero after he crawled beneath a bus to comfort a woman who was pinned under it.
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/i-told-her-i-would-stay-hero-police-officer-crawls-under-bus-to-hold-trapped-womans-hand/

Police Rescue Teens From Burning Car
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/dramatic-police-rescue-of-teens-from-burning-car/

Heroic police officer grabs suicidal woman just in time as she leaps from New York City building
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2008041/Heroic-police-officer-grabs-suicidal-woman-just-time-leaps-New-York-City-building.html

HEROIC OFFICERS: Six Des Moines police officers are being honored for their heroic actions while working to pull people from a burning car
http://www.whotv.com/news/who-story-dm-officers-honored-121411,0,4708342.story

Honolulu Police Awarded For Heroism
Seven Officers Honored For Stopping Crime Spree In April
http://www.kitv.com/r/30000052/detail.html

Macon police officer honored for heroic actions at fire
http://www.macon.com/2010/11/12/1338165/macon-police-officer-honored-for.html

Police Officer funeral a "tribute to a hero"
http://www.walb.com/story/15963472/police-officer-funeral-a-tribute-to-a-hero

San Leandro Police Officer Saves Child From Choking
http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2011/11/15/san-leandro-police-officer-saves-child-from-choking/

Chaska Police Officer Saves Life Of Choking Toddler
http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2011/12/16/chaska-police-officer-saves-life-of-choking-toddler/


Firefighter and Policeman Save Boy From House Fire in Brockport
http://www.13wham.com/news/local/story/Firefighter-and-Policeman-Save-Boy-From-House/_JZ40aIfE02fBDRbb5-Smg.cspx

City police officer enters house fire, saves 3 lives
http://www.wyomingnews.com/articles/2011/12/05/news/01top_12-05-11.txt

Officer save child
http://corsicanadailysun.com/news/x1607579458/Officer-saves-child

Police Officer saves dying dog
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/18/AR2010071803460.html

Police Officer saves two dogs
http://www.seattledogspot.com/2011/07/24/seattle-area-officer-saves-2-dogs-from-baking-in-car/

Police Officer saves dog from burning truck
http://tigertailfoods.com/wp/?p=6114

Edinburg Police Officers Honored for Heroic Act
http://www.kveo.com/news/edinburg-police-officers-honored-for-heroic-act

Tivoli Honors Heroic Police Officer
http://countrycouriermagazine.com/?p=2070

Officer died in heroic struggle
http://www.startribune.com/local/stpaul/58124457.html

Heroic police officer who died saving child in Poughkeepsie mourned
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110220/NEWS/102200332/-1/rss01

Arlington Police Officer dies saving child's life
http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/7745417-arlington-police-office-jillian-smith-died-saving-a-childs-life

Officer dies saving life of witness
http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/HPD-officer-called-hero-after-he-s-hit-killed-by-1566553.php

Police officer dies from illness he caught trying to save newborn baby with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1367328/Police-officer-dies-illness-caught-tried-save-newborn-baby-mouth-mouth.html

Deputy dies saving young girl
http://apbweb.com/forums/officer-down-6/deputy-bryan-gross-converse-county-sheriffs-office-wy-dies-saving-young-girl-46633/

I get the HERO cops.
I don't get the ones who say NOTHING when they witness a fellow officer doing things that are illegal, immoral or just plain wrong.
WHERE ARE THEY???

sunny225 wrote:I get the HERO cops.
I don't get the ones who say NOTHING when they witness a fellow officer doing things that are illegal, immoral or just plain wrong.
WHERE ARE THEY???

It happens all the time. They simply don't make the news. Just like most other witnesses and people who report crimes are not highlighted in the news. The bad stories make the news, the good ones don't. Same for police, fire, medical, and the average citizen. For every "good story" in the media, there are 100 bad ones. There are thousands...probably tens of thousands...interactions between police and citizens every day in the US. A small fraction go badly, either based on the cops behavior or the other person's behavior. Those stories make the news. The other thousands don't. I'm personally aware of numerous cases where bad cops were reported by good cops. And the bad cops were punished as they should have been. And the good cops who reported them did not ask for awards or news stories or kudos or cookies because they were simply doing their job...catching criminals, regardless of whether they wear a badge or not. Good cops, which are the vast majority of cops, are more disgusted by criminals amongst their ranks than anyone.

NYPD cop throws down badge of criminal cop in disgust...
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/officer_admits_disgust_duty_arresting_gfs06JNqbprurRJnsPBbjJ

sunny225 wrote:I get the HERO cops.
I don't get the ones who say NOTHING when they witness a fellow officer doing things that are illegal, immoral or just plain wrong.
WHERE ARE THEY???

I get the BAD cop stories. They get posted all the time. I don't get the stories that are posted about the thousands and thousands of good cops who are doing things the legal way, the moral way, or doing things that are just plain right.
WHERE ARE THOSE STORIES?
Gonzo

Let me rephrase my last post.
I don't understand the cops who stand by while these kinds of things are being done by their fellow officers.
Where are they? Are they saying anything? Or are they closing ranks & covering for the dirty ones?

Edited to add: all those cops who are witness to the bad ones aren't speaking up. And there's more & more incidents of police brutality, criminality & downright meaness all over this country.
Don't ya know they will be helping the military when they go after American citizen "terrorists" in the near future? according to that bill that just got passed anyway.

sunny225 wrote:Let me rephrase my last post.
I don't understand the cops who stand by while these kinds of things are being done by their fellow officers.
Where are they? Are they saying anything? Or are they closing ranks & covering for the dirty ones?

Edited to add: all those cops who are witness to the bad ones aren't speaking up. And there's more & more incidents of police brutality, criminality & downright meaness all over this country.
Don't ya know they will be helping the military when they go after American citizen "terrorists" in the near future? according to that bill that just got passed anyway.

I don't understand who don't speak up either. There is no excuse for it. But I also don't believe in painting all cops with such a broad brush. And as I explained...clearly, I thought...there are cops reporting bad cops. It happens all the time.

And if you really think that most cops and troops will hop on board the bandwagon to round up citizens for the government, than something else you clearly don't understand are cops and troops.

something else I clearly don't understand, eh?

You say there are cops reporting bad cops. OK. what happens to the bad cops? where are the reports on the bad cops? why aren't we hearing in the media that so & so couldn't stand by while pecker head kicked Joe Citizen to death? where are those stories? why are we hearing that 5 cops stomped a homeless, mentally ill man to death on the street in Arizona, I think it was? why are we hearing about an iffy 'raid' on an Iraq war veteran marine in AZ that was defending his home against a no knock raid?
that's what I don't understand.
Yes, we have lots of cops that do their jobs without abusing their power. That's the guys I want to come in contact with.
It's the other ones though who scare the crap out of me. The ones who shoot dogs who are no threat to them. the ones who taser & beat people just because they can.
It's coming to a point where the average American won't know who the good guys & the bad guys are. If the police don't police their own & get back to the footing of "good apples" for all of them....
And why wouldn't they, the police, follow orders for the govt in the future? they're doing it now. they've done it in the past. Or are you talking about those "good apples" now?