‘She was just doing her job’: Homeless vet loses service dog during arrest for panhandling

Yahoo ^ | 10/27/21 | Rachel Nostrant

[Responsibility2nd]

Joshua Graham Rohrer, a homeless veteran in North Carolina, says he was wrongfully arrested and mistreated by Gastonia police officers, who also tased his service dog Sunshine, sparking support from those who witnessed the incident.

~

Rohrer was standing on a median near a Gastonia shopping center with Sunshine on Oct. 13 when a 911 caller contacted police. While Rohrer wasn’t bothering anybody, having Sunshine with him was his way of using sympathy to get money from people, the caller said, according to a copy of the audio call.

~

Rohrer’s grief over losing Sunshine almost killed him, Dowell said to Military Times. According to Dowell, Rohrer took off into traffic after learning Sunshine was gone, and tried throwing himself in front of any car that he could.

“He absolutely lost his mind,” Dowell said.

Losing Sunshine and facing the allegedly rough and careless treatment of the police left Rohrer feeling hopeless enough that he “just wanted to die,” he said.

[Responsibility2nd]

Very long story.

Long story short: crazy homeless person loses his dog, tries to kill himself.

[TwelveOfTwenty]

How the free traitors could have chosen communist slave labor over the Vets who defended their freedom is beyond me.

[PIF]

Long story short: crazy homeless VETERAN loses his dog, tries to kill himself.

[mware]

Wait, they killed the dog!!!!

[TexasGator]

““I was just standing there {in the median}, waving at people, when this lady waved me over and offered me money,” Rohrer told Military Times. “

Right!

[waterhill]

That is effed up!

[Skywise]

No - she got loose and was found dead from a hit and run.

[Flick Lives]

As he was taken away by police for booking, Rohrer said he begged the officers to let Sunshine come with him. He cited a North Carolina statute that affords people with disabilities the right to keep their service dogs with them, especially in cases where the individual’s health is at risk.

“They laughed at me,” he said. “I begged them to bring her to me or to give her to an officer to take with them but they wouldn’t listen, they didn’t care.”

—

These are the sort of cops that would kill the unvaccinated if ordered to do so.

[PIF]

Rohrer deployed to Kuwait and Iraq from October 2004 to November 2005 with the Kentucky Army National Guard. He suffers from service-connected post-traumatic stress disorder, and his 2-year-old Belgian Malinois Sunshine was his Veterans Affairs-prescribed treatment ...

He wasn’t moving fast enough so he tried to reach into his pocket to get his ID. They slammed him up against the car and they put cuffs on him. ...

Sunshine, responding to his distress, jumped up on the hood trying to help him ...

“She was just doing her job, licking me and trying to calm me down,” Rohrer said. “The cops starting yelling at her and me, telling me to get her to settle down, but they wouldn’t allow me to physically get control of her.”

Rohrer said Sunshine nipped at one of the officer’s ankles as she was hopping down from the hood of the car, prompting the officer to tase her.

“We’re out here screaming, ‘Don’t shoot the dog! Don’t shoot the dog!’” Huffman said.

Huffman said Sunshine ran to a nearby store with one of the taser prongs dangling off her body while police took Rohrer to the back of the car and “slammed him on the pavement.”

As he was taken away by police for booking, Rohrer said he begged the officers to let Sunshine come with him. He cited a North Carolina statute that affords people with disabilities the right to keep their service dogs with them, especially in cases where the individual’s health is at risk.

“They laughed at me,” he said. “I begged them to bring her to me or to give her to an officer to take with them but they wouldn’t listen, they didn’t care.”

Rohrer never saw Sunshine again. While his friend and fellow veteran Dave Dowell was able to get his hands on the service dog that night, she later slipped her leash and ran away while Rohrer was still in jail,.

After nearly two days, Sunshine was found in nearby Shelby, where Dowell lives. She had been hit by a car and killed. Losing Sunshine and facing the allegedly rough and careless treatment of the police left Rohrer feeling hopeless enough that he “just wanted to die,” he said.

Pvt. First Class Joshua Rohrer (right) and two of his fellow soldiers pose for a photo in a 642nd Military Intelligence Battalion's photo album, owned by Rohrer. (Courtesy of Joshua Rohrer/ Facebook)

[Responsibility2nd]

I’m surprised they just didn’t shoot the dog right then and there.

[TexasGator]

" ... tased his serviceemotional support dog ..."

In the doorway with no leash!

[perfect_rovian_storm]

Ok, so he’s service connected for PTSD, which has an average rating of 70%. He’s probably 100% service connected, which gives him what, about $3k a month?

I’m not minimizing what happened to him with the dog, but he shouldn’t be out begging for money. He should go into treatment or have a custodian if he can’t handle himself on his income. Then, he wouldn’t have to worry about jackboot cops taking his dog.

[waterhill]

Yep.

An aside, Malinois are not cheap. Especially trained ones.

[TexasGator]

“Ok, so he’s service connected for PTSD,”

Did anyone see the documentation?

[monkeyshine]

One of the most loyal and protective breeds out there. Very similar to German Shepherds.

[Lurker]

It’s in the article:

“ and his 2-year-old Belgian Malinois Sunshine was his Veterans Affairs-prescribed treatment ...”

L

[TexasGator]

Our online service dog training is 95% cheaper than in person training sessions and similarly effective.

Once your dog passes this class they will qualify to fly in the cabin of a plane for free and will be exempt from pet deposits and pet rent.

https://usserviceanimals.org/service-dog-training?utm_content=Bing;Search;DesktopTraining;ServiceAnimalTraining1;service%20animal%20training;900&msclkid=4169ebef70411750fdb28a931ebeb74d&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=MMP%20-%20Enhanced%20CPC%20Service%20Training%20-%20Desktop&utm_term=service%20animal%20training

[old curmudgeon]

I am surprised and disappointed so many a$$ holes are on FR.

No one should be treated that way other than maybe a mass murderer.

Or some of the posters here.

And not one word in the story about disciplining the cops.

[Seruzawa]

Another poor victim who foolishly accepted “help” from psychiatrists. As if permanently damaging your nervous system with drugs and ECT is going to make things better.

[TexasGator]

“Veterans Affairs-prescribed treatment”

Out begging with an unleashed dog in traffic also?