Police Shoots and Kills a Dog for No Reason

Posted on: February 3rd, 2009 61 Comments
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A Grady County Oklahoma Sheriff’s Deputy shot a dog belonging to Grady County resident Tammy Christopher and the incident is now making news as shown on a video clip posted at The Agitator blog by Radley Balko.

As reported by The Grady County Express Star, Christopher has filed a $25,000 claim against Grady County, The State of Oklahoma and Grady County Deputy Sean Knight for the wrongful shooting of her dog.

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61 Responses

  1. Anonymous says:

    WTF? Is this the old west? Sad sad .The poor thing is a house pet.

  2. Anonymous says:

    that is just so wrong.. im an animal lover and the lady was right he had a chance to get in his car. how could anyone do that to an animal.that cop deserves what he is getting for doing that.

  3. NOEX says:

    Take them to the cleaners, no reason to shoot a dog while on private property, no excuse.

  4. short says:

    bet he was also a short man…every short cop I have ever met likes to shoot animals

  5. downwithcop says:

    This is just wrong. I hope she wins – this guy is a nut case.

  6. black says:

    He should be fired! Next he will be shooting innocent humans. People should demand he be fired. It is their tax dollars paying the moron’s salary.

  7. coward says:

    if you look at where the animal was running you can see that the animal was going around him and not at him… what a complete coward and nutcase, i hope he has to pay…

  8. leash says:

    Umm… has anyoone ever heard of leash laws? They apply to private property as well!!

    • mdb says:

      you’re a damned idiot and no they do not. It is your own property, you can have a dog wherever you want on your own property. The officer has no right to be on private property without permission. Legally, as a citizen, without justification he is trespassing and if he draws a firearm, he should be shot in the damn face. He had plenty of time to react, plenty of time to pull a tazer or pepper spray, but he opted for the lethal method. Police officers are acting a reckless abandon and have no concern for actually upholding the law anymore. They are a disgrace, and often violate every constitutional right citizens have anymore.

  9. Officer says:

    An officer has every right to defend himself when an animal comes at him like that. The animal was shot because the owner failed to restrain her animal. The officer had no time to get into his vehicle as he had just backed up to the door when the dog reached him.

    • Debbi says:

      Lots of dog shootings lately, maybe we could use some cops who are such pussies, like maybe we could replace them with mailcarriers.

  10. PD says:

    The officer had no chance to enter he vehicle, he was still backing up towards the door when the dog reached him. One thing none of you are doing is putting yourself in the officer’s shoes. IF a dog you had never met before was racing towards you, what would you do?

    • mdb says:

      you use a police baton, you use pepper spray, you use a tazer, you move faster than a very slow backstep. You use common sense. You do not enter a private citizens property without a warrent. The second he saw the dog from a distance he could have made a proper decision. You see the officer stutter step and then time goes by. The camera does not show the entire field of view. You seem to be under the impression that from the time the dog came into the camera view that is the only amount of time the officer had to react.

  11. RLY? says:

    yeah right an officer has every right to defend himself? I had a doberman that was fenced in and an officer approached the gate and pulled his gun and i was there thank goodness and screamed at the idiot to put the gun away because he might shoot me instead… i have a large yard and the dog wasnt even near him and could have never gotten to him through a five foot high fence… oh he was just lost, and by the way the animal is always on a leash when outside of the fence… this officer is lucky the bullet didnt go through the dog and hit someone in the house or across the street… maybe he need more training, some mace, or maybe even better a different job, what he going to do when someone does come at him with a gun? probably pee his pants and faint.. lol

  12. watch your dogs says:

    this is a human dogowner stupidity video.that lady is an idiot,that dog is a monster.good thing that was not a kid,could of got ugly,they usually dont carry guns for protection.the dogs name pretty much sums the whole thing up.to many stories of dogs attacking people.police are public servants not dog meat.yey for them.he should get paid .probably prevented an accident.as said before.as for the private property idiot.i guess that means if someone or something with a knife or a gun or teeth they just sit there and get attacked? what an idiot!he is a public servent not a target,private property or public, they are the same.they try to help us,we just get in the way somtimes.

    • Debbi says:

      I think it is stupidity on the cops part. He could have fired a warning shot, right? It would have scared the dog away. But he wanted to shoot the dog, that is the reality.

  13. Anonymous says:

    if you look closer he pulls out his gun while backing up before he got to his driver door. To me, the office had full intention of shooting this dog. i could understand if it was a pitbull or a rottweiler but if you look at the picture of the dog. he looks harmless. if it was a regualr civilian without a gun and they had fear for their life they would have gotten inside the car. this moron had a gun and without a single common sense in him shot the dog. i hope they also file criminal charges against him. (animal cruelty or something)

    • Debbi says:

      The officer was a pussy, shame but we cannot depend on our police to protect us from a real threat when they are so cowardice.

  14. Anonymous says:

    Owners have the resposibility to keep their pets either on a lease, in a fenced area or in the house away from people who are offended by your loved pets, so don’t blame anyone but yourself

  15. thug says:

    shoot the cop… the dog was obviously coming up to say “hello”… I will guarantee teh dog’d tail was wagging….

  16. Anonymous says:

    That was just wrong. The dog went around the officer not at him. Has anyone heard the term shoot to wound, not shoot to kill. I have seen too many videos where other things could have been done. This is one of them. The officer did have plenty of time in the video to get back in his car. The officer could have got his club out to keep the dog away from him if that was what the dog was going to do or use his had to push the dog away. I have been attacked by a dog myself and I used my hands to push the dog away. Sorry no excuse for the shooting of the dog.

  17. ghettoyaheard says:

    This damn cop needs to be fired and placed in prison for what he did. That dog wasn’t attacking him, the dog was just running up to see who had come to the house.

    The guy is a dirt-bag who deserves to loose his job.

    That dog was not behaving at all aggressive.

    Just another case of a red-neck a@@H0le cop

  18. buiza says:

    I dislike cops, I Love Dogs.

  19. Anonymous says:

    I agree, not necessary to kill the dog. He probably drove up there just for that reason…asking directions? A cop has to drive up to a stranger’s house for directions? He probably knew the dog was loose and wanted a kill. Pretty sick.

  20. Anonymous says:

    I would ask for much more than $25,000. This young woman was so very lucky to have that security camera, and now that the truth is plain and clear, she should be compensated for the loss of her companion. I am not trying to say be greedy, but this woman, and her family, deserve more than what they are asking. It is emotionally distressing just to watch the video and it’s not even my dog. Can you imagine having to live with that picture burned into your memory for the rest of your life?

  21. confused says:

    I wonder what else this cop has gotten with.
    What a wimp to shoot a dog – he should have gotten back in his car. Hope he loses his job. He’s too dangerous to be on the street with a gun.

  22. Anonymous says:

    Someone should post the sheriff dept’s email address so they can know people are outraged!

  23. Nick says:

    This is a case of a officer being on private property, I have electric underground fencing so if somebody comes on my property they had better watch out. My stuff is posted by several signs and perfectly legal. No fence. It’s funny to see the niggers run thinking the dogs can get to them only the dogs stop at the line before they get zapped.

  24. Anonymous says:

    Cops in suburban Chicago shot my son’s dog last year. They _say_ one officer fired one shot. RUBBISH. My son heard 3-5 separate shots. Buddy managed to drag himself back to the back door before he collapsed and died in front of my grandchildren. The cops wouldn’t let my son near the dog. They took the body and everything else that could prove they lied. The report says Buddy attacked the officer…while Buddy was tied up in his own yard and the cop was 3 doors away on an unrelated call. It’s just murder.

    • Debbi says:

      Wouldn’t it be nice if 60 minutes did a story on the dog killings by police, at least so that the American public can be informed of the danger?

  25. dog = family says:

    In my America my dog is a member of my family and beware to police or any one else private property is just that as long as there is a high enough fence a dog owner need not leash an nimal on his I repeat his not the states property cop or not shoot a member of my family and your not walkin off my propery alive cop ahole especially my dog!!!

  26. Anonymous says:

    Leash laws or not, a non lethal form of ‘defense’ should have been used. Using his mace or nightstick to push the dog away. If nothing else, a simple hit to the nose of any aggressive dog would suffice.
    In reply to “IF a dog you had never met before was racing towards you, what would you do?” I’m sure most people don’t walk around armed with a gun, smart one.
    And I agree…based off the clip, shooting the dog was pre-meditated, which in itself is messed up, cop or not.

  27. SCali says:

    Please read what happened in Southern California last week. And it didn’t even make the news on most stations!

    Riverside County Animal Control Strikes Again
    Is anyone concerned that law enforcement officers shot and killed 70 dogs during a seizure in Temecula last week where animal control officers were supposedly in charge? Was it just shooting for fun or could any other procedure have been employed? Did anyone even try? What about the owner, was he allowed to try an remedy the situation? Are we regressing to the wild wild west where shooting animals is an okay option, never mind what the word humane means? Is anybody watching or listening? Where is PETA? Last Chance for Animals? Anybody? Wow, so while Riverside County Department of Animal Control Services was busy pushing its mandatory spay/neuter of all animals, they managed to keep the lid on this horrendous act. Talk about animal cruelty, whose going to stand up for these dead dogs? Anybody?

    And I quote: “…Officers were alerted to the property after receiving a call that two vicious dogs were running loose at the address. When animal control officers arrived, packs of dogs were attacking each other and killing one of their own. About 70 dogs circled officers and threatened to attack, forcing authorities to kill them.” http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28964752/

    Another story that appeared in the Californian, did NOT mention the animals shot and killed during this incident – http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2009/01/31/news/californian/temecula/z7f0c1ef4ac2b73e28825754e0071d8d4.txt

    Guess shooting dogs in a free for all just isn’t news. What would have happened if a stray bullet had killed a child, two children maybe three? Anything? Wake up Riverside.

  28. WV says:

    this sheriff is a disgusting hillbilly redneck- I’m transplanted from WV to CA due to redneck BSL freaks like this ‘badass’ wanna-be macho man… if he did this to Bruiser, imagine what he’d to to my 3 bully breeds???? As they say in WV, “he needs to be tied up and horsewhipped”

  29. Yuck says:

    Incidents like this are exactly why local Police Departments should be abolished. They are a self perpetuating den of stupidity. This happens all the time on local Departments, Commissioner/Mayor Hogg appoints Nephew Bubba Sheriff/Chief who in turn brings the whole inbred family onto the payroll. Then you end up with Cousin Goober on patrol with Brother-in-law Billy Jim Joe Bob who was Goober’s Cousin before he married Goober’s Sister Sally Jane. We was uh needin die recshuns cuz we was lost, YUCK,YUCK,YUCK ! Gee Goober, ever hear of GPS? How about in-car lap tops? Of course not, that would cut into the profits of the family business.

  30. Fair says:

    “Umm… has anyoone ever heard of leash laws? They apply to private property as well!!”

    There was no leash law in effect in this case. The officer was on her property, period.

    But then, officers can shoot actual people for reasons that would get any civilian thrown in jail for manslaughter. This is par for the course.

  31. Anonymous says:

    ok half of you are fucking morrons

    first of all, the dog was NOT attacking and it’s obvious, as someone said, he was running around him.

    Second of all, only idiots blame a breed (“if it was a pit bull Rottweiller I would have understand” bullshit, theres no “evil” dog, just fucktards owner who don’t know how to train them and give them rules.

    Second , if the cop was really in his right, he wouldn’t have lied that the dog attacked him, then changed his story.

  32. Temecula says:

    I am concerned about the story where the police Officers shot the 70 dogs in Temecula while animal control officers were present. I want to read the entire story. Please post that story. Why would officers shot any dog and to shot 70 dogs. What is that about????

  33. Anonymous says:

    i think the dog was just excited that someone was there and it didn’t want to bite the cop. it just wanted to run around and play. the cop just panicked and then when he realized the mistake he later lied about it.

  34. Tom says:

    This wasn’t self defence. This guys seems to have been on a dog hunting trip. If you’re a dog owner, you would see that this dog was just excited and playful. The way it was running didn’t look dangerous at all.

    Tom

  35. DMZ says:

    REEALLY to you people who think this dog should be on a leash on their own property your a tard plain and simple …. look at the land the house sits on. leash laws apply in the city. that road isnt a road its their drive way to their house. that ENTIRE lot was their private property. fools like this deputy are the ones who give law enforcement a bad name. i mean who really gives respect to officers in general now a days.

  36. meanz says:

    To everyone talking about leash laws and whatever i can understand what you're getting at, but there were other ways around this, assuming the dog was aggressive. The cop could have got on top of his car for example and given the owner a chance to restrain it.

    I have a husky that absolutely adores people, when people come into the house shell jump up to try and lick their face and fuss over them asking for a stomach rub and whatever… she never goes outside without a leash on, but accidents can happen and shes managed to get out of the front door before. I would like to be given a chance to restrain her if it happens.

    He had plenty of time to get on top of the car or into it.

  37. Why says:

    I agree and hope he got his ass handed to him. And there is not a leash law on private property and she had an underground fence. I just had a police officer come on my private property snd ace my dog i have an underground fence as well its bullshit cops are no better then anyone else.

  38. lowlife says:

    This "officer" demonstrates the contempt law enforcement has for it's citizens. He is the epitomey of what law enforcement HAS BECOME! Low life jack booted thugs that are remeniscent of the brown shirts in germany back in the 30's….and he's a limp wristed coward.

    • Debbi says:

      Its absurd that taxpayers pay for police departments to have all sorts of non-lethal weapons like mace and tasers when they obviously want to kill someone any chance they get. They should stop buying this crap if they are not going to use it. He could have used spray. He wanted to kill.

  39. justice says:

    I hope someone shoots him "defending" themselves from his rampage.

  40. Nina says:

    "The officer had no chance to enter he vehicle, he was still backing up towards the door when the dog reached him. One thing none of you are doing is putting yourself in the officer's shoes. IF a dog you had never met before was racing towards you, what would you do?" this has to be the most fucked up statement ive ever heard. he clearly could have just opened the door and get inside the car. Also, sometimes dogs are friendly and like to jump up on people its hard to tell the difference between that and attacking but since this was some ones pet im assuming the dog is not vicious at all. fucking fatass cop was just too fucking lazy to deal with the dog or hurry up and get in his car. I'd rather him be dead than the innocent dog that didnt do anything. fuck him.

  41. tambrathegreat says:

    I will never understand the contingent in law enforcement that insists that a dog that is doing the job it was bred to do is a threat. When anyone enters a yard, they should first assess whether there is an animal on property.

    And for the record, the leash law did not apply in this case. The dog was clearly on private property, and the intruder clearly entered its territory. Another interesting point is that the dog was clearly running past the intruder when he was killed. How can the officer's action be labeled as anything but willful maliciousness?

    Oh, and breed-specific profiling doesn't work. I can tell you as a person who works with all types of dogs everyday (I am a groomer) no particular breed is more likely to bite than any other. If a dog is provoked, they can bite regardless of breed. Dogs, like any other social population in nature have distinct and diverse personalities.

    And the answer to the question, "What would I do if a dog were charging me?"

    I would do what any sane person would, I would bring my hands to my neck, assume a non-threatening posture, keep my eyes averted so as not to spark a dominance issue, and I would let the dog sniff me. That is what we are trained to do in my profession. I suppose if we were given guns, we could shoot any animal indiscriminately, but then again, I wouldn't have clients that way. It's too bad the police aren't held to the same standards of conduct as an ordinary groomer.

  42. Such says:

    Such a great little blog, very glad I ‘uncovered’ it. I will let my my buddies all about this site & I’ll come back soon.

  43. Sarah says:

    Nina, get your head out of your you know what! That dog ran PAST the officer and he had to turn to fire and kill it. It was clearly not running at him.

  44. Troy says:

    Listen to all you pathetic losers defending the cop and throwing in the “what if that was a kid” nonsense. It wasn’t a kid, even if it was, who cares, the dog wasn’t doing anything. The cop is a moron, coward, pussy, choose a label. Leash laws do NOT apply on private property, retards. If my dogs are loose on my property and you enter and get bit, attacked, whatever, thats you’re problem, not mine. Cop or not I’d of shot this spineless POS right in the head had that been my dog.

  45. david says:

    here is the deal dog good cop evil

  46. Rob says:

    U should not be on private property,and knowing there is a dog from the video,he should of had his taser out just in case.

  47. Pat says:

    Cops are trained to kill, couple of beers laugh it up. He should be jailed for discharging his weapon. Publish his name and home address, and send it to PETA

  48. yeah right says:

    I am so sick of the police in this country running over the public and “our rights”! I have absolutely NO respect for police here. They are abusive authoritarian bullies who think that they have the right to do as they wish and the public just has to take it. I got a news flash for them I don’t respect their authority and it isn’t over me and if they came to my house and shot my dog they just might get the favor returned. I don’t take things like this lightly and somebody could get seriously hurt over a dog. Cops need to learn to cool it and learn their place and never forget they are public servants not the other way round. I can’t even watch shows like AMW or cops because every time I do I see people getting abused, slammed on the ground when they weren’t resisting and such. If you notice the police will be yelling stop resisting while they abuse the person with excessive force. The reason is they know it’s being filmed and this negates any legal action that could be taken against them. It’s total BS and the police nationwide are out of control. I would recommend that no young child be taught to admire or look up to these nasty little violent people who masquerade as protectors. “Protect and Serve” yeah right! what a joke! more like “Abuse and Bully”. 99% of police wouldn’t know honesty, decency, and respectfulness if it slapped them across the face. They are power hungry angry little bitter nothings in search of a life.

  49. yeah right says:

    I am going to make one more comment I have read many of your posts here on this subject and let me just give a short “kudos” to poster “Harley” he is right on. Anyway, my one more comment is this–Even if, I said EVEN IF i have a protective dog whether natural or trained to be that way that doesn’t give the police the right or authority to shoot their gun and kill my or anyone’s animals and the police need to respect that. They should not come rushing in on my posted property like armed thugs but they always do. It’s the fact that they do that’s the problem. They have no respect for individual right of citizens of this country. As far as they are concerned you will do as your told– get it, see what I mean. This is a problem that has to be addressed. Cops always get away with little to no retribution. Until we start putting cops behind bars for this kind of behavior nothing will change. People need to get mad and get together and stand up against the cops. Just loosing their job is not enough. Maybe loosing their freedom will change that smart-ass attitude. Put them in check and wake them up from their delusions of power and grandeur.

  50. yeah right says:

    Don’t make excuses for cops bad behavior people. They wouldn’t allow you to make any so don’t give them the benefit of the doubt. Cops are never to be trusted, ever. They are pathetic cowards who have to have guns drawn anytime they go anywhere because they are too much of a coward to do their job without it. I think we need to be more like England and take away the guns from cops and make them do the job if they still want it with only stun guns and pepper spray. Only NON-LETHAL means because they are too stupid to be trusted with anything more. REMEMBER- NEVER TRUST LAW ENFORCEMENT-THEY ARE THE ENEMY OF DECENT FREEDOM LOVING PEOPLE EVERYWHERE!

  51. yeah right says:

    TAKE AWAY GUNS FROM ALL LAW ENFORCEMENT. If they still want the job and have the real guts to do it then fine. Otherwise let the “COWARDS” find something else to do. When you have a “legal” gang in blue who beats, kills, abuses, robs, rapes, and every other type of conceivable crime you still have a “GANG” so who can respect them. They are scum. WE NEED TO DO LIKE ENGLAND AND LET THEM ONLY HAVE NON-LETHAL WEAPONS. I guarantee you’ll see a lot of them quit. Cowards!

  52. Debbi says:

    Lets ask Feinstein (fiendishstein) to write up a bill to disarm the police in order to protect the dogs from these senseless shootings.

  53. Dave says:

    That dog was harmless. Typical pussy cop. Caught in a lie to. Priceless. We have lots of loser cops like this here in San Diego. Complete degenerates.

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