Posted on 04/17/2017 11:41:42 AM PDT by nickcarraway
A post circulating about a dog shot and killed by Augusta Police Department is going viral. KSN wanted to hear both sides of the story, from the police and the dog’s owner.
The dog’s owner, Alan Fitzgerald, is an army veteran suffering from PTSD. He says his dog, a black German Shepherd named “Midnite” helped alleviate his anxiety.
Fitzgerald says Midnite got out earlier in the day Thursday chasing after something, as he often did with rabbits and cats. Fitzgerald alleges that Midnite was down several mobile homes from his, where he was hovering over a smaller dog there.
“It’s how he plays,” Fitzgerald explains.
Fitzgerald says he talked with the small dog’s owner who he says said the small dog wasn’t hurt in the playing, just “shaken up”. Fitzgerald returned to his home to do yard work and was in the bathroom when he heard Midnite barking as well as gunshots.
“I got halfway out the door, and about right here where this crack is, there’s an officer standing with his gun pointed at me. I said ‘what are you guys doing here, why did you kill my dog?’ he said, ‘Get on the ground’, I said, ‘I’m not gonna get on the ground so I went inside and slammed the door,” Fitzgerald said.
Fitzgerald names several witnesses who say they saw officers enter the home which startled Midnite.
Augusta Police Chief Tyler Brewer said it isn’t so.
Brewer tells KSN that a patrol officer and an animal control officer were serving a notice to appear to the dog’s owner when the dog bolted out the door, startling the officer.
“He felt like his life was in danger. The officer didn’t have time to think about deploying anything like a taser or anything. The size of the animal, it’s not like a human, the dog was moving fast so deploying a taser isn’t something we suggest in this instance,” Chief Brewer said.
The two officers were going together to serve the notice because of the dog’s history, Brewer tells KSN.
“There’s instances where dogs have actually killed people, and I don’t expect them to be put in that situation. I also expect that people who own animals, they act responsibly. This dog, social media is saying the officers went into the residence. The officers did not go in the residence. We have other verifiable witnesses that say that’s correct, they didn’t go into the residence,” Brewer said.
A police report from April 2016 filed in Butler County details an instance where Midnite attacked Fitzgerald’s 16-year-old nephew after becoming startled. Fitzgerald’s sister explained to KSN that they had to file a police report to get an ambulance.
“They wouldn’t have even known that if my sister wouldn’t have been upset yesterday as soon as that happened and she was irate. I don’t know why she said anything but that’s neither here nor there,” Fitzgerald said.
Butler County Sheriff’s Office can not release the report because the victim was a minor, but they listed him as being transported to a hospital as “code green” following the attack which left lacerations on the victim’s face.
“Midnite did not attack him (nephew), intently. It was totally an unprovoked attack,” Fitzgerald said.
Brewer said the dog “charged the animal control officer” after officers knocked, startling the animal control officer and forcing him to fall off the porch on his back, hitting his head.
“The animal control officer tried to kick the dog away,” said Brewer. “The dog lunged in the air toward the animal control officer and the patrol officer standing by shot the animal.”
Brewer says the animal control officer faced minor injuries.
Brewer adds, the officer who shot the dog feels “terrible”, even losing sleep last night re-living it.
Midnite is being cremated, which Augusta Animal Center confirms to KSN that they are paying for.
Fitzgerald showed KSN an ADA card he says depicts Midnite’s service dog certification, effective in December 2016.
Chief Brewer says they cannot find sufficient documentation that Midnite is a service dog.
“We cant find any paperwork or indication that the dog is a service dog. We’re looking into that. There are laws in the state that misrepresenting a dog as a service dog is illegal so we’re looking at that. This guy could be facing other charges,” Brewer said.
Midnite was black. Just sayin’.
I don’t like it when the police shoot dogs.
But this guy seems to have done an especially bad job of making sure his dog behaved.
Chief Brewer needs a new vocation, maybe Dem spokesperson.. if lies were gold, he’d be a rich one.
“There’s instances where dogs have actually killed people, and I don’t expect them to be put in that situation. I also expect that people who own animals, they act responsibly.”
Exactly=- The owner caused the death of his own dog-
Yeah, the death of the dog is the owners fault.
In several situations, the guy did nothing to control his dog.
That “hovering over a small dog” could have turned out very badly for the small dog.... but, according to the owner, that’s just how his dog plays.
What an idiot!
The dog owner completely failed his dog.
It makes me very damn sad too, because the dog was a Shepherd.
Guy sounds like a total f***in’ retard ;/
I jog while being chased by dogs. Dogs rank low.
Shoot that dog if threatened. Owner should have got traning.
The dog has gone viral? Uh oh.
Dog Shot by Augusta Police Going Viral
So, did the dog spread a virus after being shot, or did the Augusta Police suffer some kind of viral attack that caused them to shoot a dog? Should the CDC be called out? Should the people of Kansas be concerned about a viral epidemic?
Did Ms. Willis attend any English grammar classes after Grade 2? A PROPER headline would clarify the issue. It seems that few ‘journolists’ can communicate properly even in their native tongue.
Something doesn’t make sense. Animal control shows up to serve a notice to appear? There is something else going on here. And this is supposedly a service animal.
Most likely both parties are lying a bit.
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I have a Shepherd and a very large yard (7 acres) and usually don't have a problem. I never let her go outside un-tethered unless I'm with her. She has unfortunately decided to chase a couple of rabbits off the property and I've had to go out in the car to find her, its scary. She is a wonderful, gentle as can be sweetheart but her bark sounds awful and would scare the crap out of anybody. If a cop were to shoot her I think it would kill me.
I have a training collar on her now, even on the leash I don't let her out without the collar being on and tested. The collar has a beep mode and vibrate mode and a shock mode. I took the shock mode off so she couldn't be accidentally shocked. When she hears the beep or feels the vibrate even when chasing a varmint she stops and comes running back.
If you have an animal you love you better treat it responsibly or you could lose it, but, I have no time for cops that kill dogs. They have so many other means to stop a dog attack they don't need to kill it. Use your baton, club or taser, fine the owner but don't kill a dog, that is just stupid. For an animal control officer to be in a position to have to kill an animal is triple stupid.
I hate BS like this. Was in a park with my 4 year-old, and an unknown doberman came charging at us. Of course, my guard went way up. The dog circled but kept a short distance, and then the owner appeared. She said: "Don't worry, he's friendly."
I wanted to punch her in the face.
control your animals, rednecks!
#BlackLabsMatter....................
BULLSHIT! False police reports are the norm. I know.
I told my kid just yesterday. Never have contact with the police and never say anything unless forced other than I want a lawyer or no you need a warrant.
He said dad, the police are there to serve and protect.
We had a longer only if your life is in danger conversation. Then I pointed out 4 cop cars huddled on the highway ahead (via Waze) to bust Easter Sunday travelers and asked him if a better use of their time would be hunting down violent criminals and drug dealers.
He changed the subject. He got the message.
There is nothing worse than a police officer sitting at the bottom of a local grade Barney Fifen' it with a radar gun lookin' for 11 over.
Gutless and lazy.
No sympathy for the dog owner. Control your animal or it gets taken out.
#CanineLivesMatter
Gutless and lazy.
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You forgot sadistic. And they are not lazy when it comes time to stomp or beat someone.
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