Posted on 06/21/2013 7:03:06 PM PDT by Altariel
When Rebecka Brown returned home June 5, she noticed a business card stuck in her door.
That card was from Det. Joey Cooper, a deputy with the Carteret County Sheriff’s Office.
“Naturally I called the number immediately to find out why an officer had been here,” she wrote on a Facebook page.
Det. Cooper told her he was there to serve a warrant to her husband for failure to appear in court in relation to a ticket he had received while hunting. She also found out something horrifying.
“He then told me he had to tase my dog.”
When she asked why, Brown says Det. Cooper told her that Merlin, the family’s year-old lab/boxer mix, had attacked him. “I asked him if he was okay… I was in complete shock! He said he was fine, not so much as a scratch on him.”
[Note: Merlin was attached to a 10' lead in the backyard, not roaming freely.]
“He instructed me that the taser did not shock Merlin because only one prong made a connection with him,” she said adding that Det. Cooper told her how to remove the prong. When the call ended, she went to check on her wounded pup. “Merlin wouldn’t let me near him. I could see the prong protruding from his back but but he just cowered and whined,” she said.
After several attempts to coax Merlin over so she could remove the prong, she noticed something strange about his eye. “There was a little blood under the lid of his right eye and the eyeball itself resembled an old rubber party balloon.” After she and a friend removed the prong she noticed his eyeball was ripped open.
Brown said she immediately called Det. Cooper back but got his voicemail. She then called the Sheriff’s Office to report her dog’s injuries. An hour later, she says two deputies showed up to investigate. 
“They asked to see Merlin, so I took them inside to him,” she said. “As soon as he saw them, he cowered to the side, wimpered, and started to visibly shake. The deputy took a step towards him and Merlin started to growl. He was responding to the uniform… I informed the deputy that this is not his normal behavior and that he is responding out of fear. A uniform, just like theirs, had seriously injured him…. he was afraid of another round with that uniform!”
She believes the eye injury was caused by either a flashlight or a nightstick.
Brown’s quest for accountability continued.
I tried to file a formal complaint with the Sheriff’s Department and I was shuffled away. I went to the magistrate to press charges for animal cruelty and I was told that I couldn’t because he is a law enforcement officer!!! So, I went to the district attorneys office to lodge a complaint and get an investigation underway. I was directed to the SBI (State Bureau of Investigation).”
She has also taken to the internet for justice starting a website, a Facebook page and a petition. On the Justice for Merlin Facebook page, Brown has been updating those interested in her “roadblocks” with law enforcement and the justice system, as well as Merlin’s recovery.
After multiple calls to District Attorney Scott Thomas, an internal investigation was finally started. On Wednesday, Brown says she was visited by Sheriff Asa Buck and an internal affairs officer.
Following the meeting she posted:
Both the sheriff and internal affairs feel that the investigation revealed that the deputy is without fault. He stated that he was afraid when he and Merlin met in my back yard and that the Deputy is thankful that he grabbed the taser rather than his firearm. I was further informed that the deputy had every legal right to be on the property and had a right to defend himself. They do not believe that the deputy entered my back yard with the intent of harming Merlin and that Merlin’s injuries are an unfortunate situation. After Merlin is done with all of his vet visits, I am to inform the department and they will see about getting the bills paid.
…
I honestly don’t know how I feel about all this. I’m angry that my dog was hurt. I’m very angry that my dog will never regain full sight in that eye. I’m hurt that my children are affected by this to the point that they tell me they are afraid of cops. I’m angry that the use of tasers on animals is endorsed by our county. The county considers this matter closed.
…
I’ve never known the sheriff to be anything but honorable. I am so confused and hurt.
Begin rant:
Justified? Afraid of a dog that was tied up?
There is not justification for harming an animal if you just get spooked. The deputy, according to Brown, admitted that he didn’t have a scratch on him. So how can this assault be justified?
If it had not been a law enforcement officer, the individual responsible for the injuries to Merlin would be brought up on animal cruelty charges. But because of the incestuous investigation, the perp gets to walk.
The Department shouldn’t have to compensate for the vet bills…the individual who committed the act should be the responsible party. Badges don’t grant extra rights and individuals are responsible for their own actions.
End rant.
Carteret County Sheriff’s Office
Sheriff Asa Buck
304 Craven Street
Beaufort, NC 28516
(252) 504-4800
If the dog hadn’t been tied up the cop probably would have shot him.
That would be South Carolina.
Police officers, dog fighters looking for training aids, wild animals, cruel neighborhood kids, extreme heat, lightning, etc. it doesn't matter. If you tie your dog up in the yard and leave, you subject it to threats. Nowhere did I say what the deputy did was justified; it wasn't. Similarly, if I leave my car parked in a bad part of town with the doors unlocked and the keys in the ignition, that doesn't justify somebody stealing it, but that doesn't mean I was as diligent or responsible as I probably should have been. In that regard it has quite a bit to do with her leaving her dog tied outside.
A guy I know was a cop for a while. He said he quite because too many of the cops were steroid freaks who just wanted to shoot something or someone.
He probably would have, if the owner had not been there.
Perhaps that particular officer decided not to push his luck at that moment.
By your amazing logic, kids shouldn’t be allowed to play in the backyard unsupervised because they might be kidnapped.
Yep. Anyone who would mistreat a dog will surely work his/her way up to mistreating people.
Why don’t law enforcement officers learn how to calm a dog before tasing or shooting it? In most cases it can be done. Also, tethering a dog in a yard will make it more aggressive.Yards should be made secure so a dog can have the run of them.
In some communities, HOAs (and local ordinances) do not permit homeowners to put up fences.
Destroys the picturesque view, don’tcha know.
Totally agree with you. These people just want a dog that barks an alert, nothing more. The dog can't get away from people or critters when it is attached to something. What a horrible existence for the dog.
It seems to me that a national organization could be formed, of people whose pets have been gratuitously attacked and injured or killed by police officers. Along with the opinion of the owner whether or not it was justified. Special notice if children are traumatized in the process.
The purpose of this organization is simple, to compile a list of incidents, police excuses and efforts to block investigation, compensation, or discipline, names of officers and department or agency involved, etc.
The idea is that patterns may emerge, indicating collaboration, at the local, state, or even national level, to having police injure or kill animals for known or unknown purposes, including intimidation, situational dominance, anger release, or other purposes.
While officers may have a need to injure or kill a dangerous animal, policies that encourage them to do so gratuitously are a threat to the public, and like the taking of steroids resulting in uncontrollable rages, to be discouraged.
Not exactly the same...but I would say, below a certain age, kids should not be unsupervised. Note that the article begins, "When Rebecka Brown returned home June 5..."
This isn't like a situation where mom is in the kitchen or the house and the kids are outside. The lady was nowhere around. Second, when kids are playing they're generally not tied up. Being tethered in an unsecured yard places a dog in a particularly vulnerable position, whether it's to the taunts of (unsupervised) neighborhood kids, thugs or taser wielding cops.
There are over 800K full time police officers in the US and one or two a$$hats show up on the news every now and then for doing something stupid and we condemn all police. To bad, so sad.
Please read the entire article — the dog was indeed tied up, but it was in the BACK YARD. The police had no business going to the back yard to leave their card at the front door.
Please read every post I've made on this thread. Nowhere have I justified what the cop did. By that same token, if there was nobody home, why wasn't the dog locked securely inside? If a pack of feral dogs found the dog tied up and mauled the ladies dog, would you feel better about it since it wasn't a cop who had no business in her backyard? If it had been a neighborhood kid with a yard that abutted her backyard, shooting the dog with a pellet gun, would that make you feel better, since the kid had a reason to be where he was?
What the cop did was wrong, no question, but the lady put the dog in a position where he was vulnerable. If you look at my analogy in a previous post, if I park my car in a bad part of town, leave the keys in the ignition and the doors unlocked and walk away from it, that in no way justifies the thief who inevitably steals it, but it doesn't mean I'm not a dumbass for leaving it like that.
There’s a difference between “stupid” and “illegal”.
Tormenting an animal is illegal.
No, the cop did something stupid (albeit illegal) and should be punished but not the entire law enforcement community like many comments have indicated.
No, he committed several illegal acts:
1) Entering the private citizen’s *back yard*, ergo intruding on her property.
2) Abusing the private citizen’s animal.
Neither of which fall under “stupidity”, and neither of which should be defended by someone who desires others to draw distinctions.
I will not, in any way, remotely excuse the gutless bastard who tazed the restrained, helpless dog *but* I never let my dogs out unless I am there watching them.
Whatever [whomever] hurts my dogs gets plugged.
No exceptions.
No mercy.
No remorse.
I want to know why the dep was poking around the back yard. Looking around to see if anyone was outside? Still don’t know if he would have to go all the way back there to see.
Yet he was nice enough to not shoot the dog, and leave a card and explain that the dog was tasered.
Inconsistent behavior, I guess.
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