[jveritas]

It was not a split second decision about what to do with the dog, he could have simply used other methods to stop the dog beside shooting him.

[Tao Yin]

It was not a split second decision about what to do with the dog, he could have simply used other methods to stop the dog beside shooting him.

I guess he should be charged with premeditated murder of a police officer then.

[Celtic Conservative]

You know that do you? or are you just second guessing again?. The dogs are trained to attack and not stop until called off my its handler. It would not listen to its handler. Quick, now the clock is ticking. Another cop, perhaps a friend is being mauled by YOUR dog. The dog is YOUR responsibility, and it is causing harm to another cop. Make a decision NOW!. Sometimes in police work the choice is between two bad choices, which one is the least worst. The only thing this cop will be judged on is this: Was his decision a reasonable one given the circumstances? And that judgement will come from other veteran cops who have "been there, done that". Not the press or bloggers. And as long as that judgement is fair and impartial he probably will not be disciplined.

CC

[DesertRhino]

“It was not a split second decision about what to do with the dog”

Uhhhh,, thats EXACTLY what it was.

[solosmoke]

“It was not a split second decision about what to do with the dog, he could have simply used other methods to stop the dog beside shooting him.”

I must admit, I would never want to cause harm to a dog. However, let’s say the officer didn’t shoot the dog. What would become of it? Would it be allowed to remain a working member of the force? Who would be held responsible if the next time it happened, the dog killed a child? If the dog was retired, what responsible, knowledgeable person would have an open home (that isn’t already full of other dogs needing homes) to safely handle a dog trained to bite on command, but doesn’t always let go? The biggest no-no in Schutzhund training is a dog that won’t release on command. The same is true for police dogs, as this kind of training demands a level-headed animal, of which there are obviously very few. In my opinion, as sad as it is, the dog was unsuitable for that job, and since he’s already been trained to bite but not willing to let go, he was far too dangerous for anything but the most capable hands, which means the best thing to do is euthanasia. I don’t say this lightly. If my dog ever bit a human, I would do the same, no hesitation. There are plenty of other animals that won’t bite that need homes, and there are other dogs better suited to police work.