Posted on 01/31/2011 8:21:41 AM PST by Immerito
A Valley neighborhood is outraged after two dogs are shot and killed by local police.
The Shelburn Town Marshal says he was forced to shoot two dogs.
Officer Doug Inman says he was called to a field off Mill Street, where neighbors say a pack of dogs were fighting.
Inman tried to break-up the fight and even fired shots into the ground to scare the dogs.
When that didn't work he shot two mastiff puppies.
The family says he had no right to kill the dogs.
"I'm just glad it wasn't a child out being attacked by these two dogs," Inman said. "They are saying they were pups but you can go over and look at the dogs and see how large they are. They are probably between 75 and 100 pounds each and if that had been a child we would have a dead child out here."
"It makes me very sad, kids are supposed to be able to trust the police department and after seeing something like that, I don't know how they can," said dog owner Angie Waldon.
Neighbors say the two dogs had a history of being aggressive.
At my home there is ONE rule.
Do not be responsible for the cops coming here.
How’d you break your fingers?
The mastiffs were apparently chained to a log, i.e., no fence. doesn’t sound like a smart idea to me. Chaining up dogs is illegal around here.
Not all cities or towns or neighborhoods will permit residents to put up fences. I do not know if fences were permitted in her area, or if she simply did not like or want a fence or could not afford one.
I could not find any statute that indicates chaining up the dogs was illegal in Indiana. I would imagine that given the evidence of a chain attached to a collar around the female’s neck, the owner would have been cited if she had broken the law in that regard.
http://www.animallaw.info/statutes/stusinst15_2_1_6_1.htm
“cop haters”
“Where government fears the people, you have freedom;
Where the people fear the government, you have tyranny.”
Some dead guy
Cogent response Kenny. I was chief in a small town 1/10th the size of the town I retired from. We had more dog calls in a month than my former agency had in a year. Small towns let their dogs run loose and think nothing of it. I bought those nooses on poles so we could snag them instead of shooting them. Most dogs comply pretty quick when they get snagged. This worked where I was at because of the size of agency and we didn’t have all the electronic stuff in the trunk.
Should one of my miscreant hounds ever require an attorney, you counselor, are it!
Said mastiffs were neither on the owner's property, or under the owner's control. Therefore counselor, the owners and not the dogs, were in violation of, I am reasonably sure, several local ordinances and state laws. Although since your assiduous research has turned up scant statutory evidence, the Wabash Valley in Indiana may well be a lawless frontier region.
Although it is certainly an intriguing legal concept, the owners have no right in law to permit their mastiffs to give a "righteous chewing" to any dog, stray or not. Of course a plea of "self-defense" might be entered. You have offered a "guilty with explanation," sort of plea here on behalf your canine clients.
Get back to the humans. The owners of the maligned mastiffs will no doubt bring suit, citing emotional distress, property damage, and irreparable psychological harm to the children who witnessed the horrible scene. They have a sort of half-fast case. Should be interesting. Of course, the stray will have to be subpoenaed as a witness.
Your last sentence makes no sense, no one advocated what you wrote...stick to the point and not your fantasy’s about “What if”
Airbags in a car accident. They broke/jammed my knuckles, on a permanent basis.
I have to retype everything at least four times.
Years ago my husband had a bad medication reaction, where he became disoriented and belligerant, and I called 911 for an ambulance.
One of the worst mistakes I ever made. He ended up in jail and I ended up having to deal with Children& Families. I got him out that afternoon, and he was in the hospital for weeks because he didn’t get prompt medical care. Plus a lawyer, dealing with the state over prosecution, and of course DCF down my neck for a over a year.
Never call 911 unless you have to.
Dogs that defend their property from a stray claiming control of said property are as justified as doing so as any Freeper who defends his or her property from any other criminal.
In my opinion, the Freepers would still be justified if, during a scuffle, the fight crossed off their property onto a vacant field.
The dogs were under control until they were provoked. There is no evidence to indicate that the owner was deliberately ignoring the dogs; with two young children, she may have had duties to them that were more important than seeing what her dogs were doing. No doubt, she had heard them growl and bark at that stray before, and she seems to have assumed that the matter could wait while she took care of other business.
Since there is no indication that either of the dogs had ever previously broken its chain, it stands to reason that the owner assumed (albeit falsely) that the chain was strong enough to keep the dog on the property.
While the dogs were, apparently, off the owner’s property when shot, their handling was a matter for animal control or for catch poles, if they truly had not been able to separate the dogs by any other method.
Fine the owner, if you must; shooting the dogs is overkill.
In fact, I know you will join me in petitioning the government to allow these caring owners and breeders to share their cells with their pets. I propose to fund the initiative by feeding neither the felon or the pet. I do believe in rehabilitation, though. So I propose paroling either survivor of the cell within 90 days. I bet on the Pit Bulls.
She had a family member who was a felon, and the cops were looking for him. He was not in her house, but they wanted to understandably search anyway.
She told them the dog was locked in the bathroom. So of course the cop goes in the bathroom, and shot the dangerous little chihuahua.
I can't think of anything that would make a community hate and distrust cops more.
The darn bird still won't leave my yard. He just pays more attention when my dogs are out.
All you had to do was ask “Would you clarify the last sentence?”
“Would you advocate that police shoot both the intruder and the homeowners fighting him were this a case about people?”
Assume three people are fighting; two of them are homeowners, one is an intruder that takes a dump on their property and spews their garbage about every now and then. This occurs several times and he is not apprehended by the appropriate authorities.
Finally, the homeowners have enough and relate to him their lack of appreciation for his disregard for their property. During the discussion, they depart from their property to a nearby vacant lot.
Would you support the cops if they shot the homeowners in such an instance, or would you not?
At the risk of appearing to undermine constitutional property rights, counselor, may I make so bold as to suggest that dogs haven't any?
Furthermore, although many Freepers cannot type all that well, I would resist placing them in the same sentence with your canine property owners. Although the former might well benefit from your representation, I doubt the latter would.
In my opinion, the Freepers would still be justified if, during a scuffle, the fight crossed off their property onto a vacant field.
Would a dog following your doctrine of hot pursuit be considered a hot dog?
Yep, mastiffs are, typically, a gentle breed. But I have yet to meet a dog that permitted a stray to intrude on its property.
Now see that’s the difference between you and I.
I know absolutely nothing about dog pschiatry.
I am sorry to hear that; it seems all too often that DCFS turns a blind eye to real abuse and real problems and over-reacts and persecutes innocent families.
I hope your husband has not since had any other bad medication reactions.
Thanks for the info.
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