Posted on 11/21/2007 12:36:37 PM PST by Lurker
A Teton County, Idaho family is outraged after they say a sheriff's deputy tried to murder their dog in their own front yard.
The Barboza family has owned their dog Bobby for five years. A few days ago they say a Teton County Idaho Sheriff's Deputy knocked on their door demanding to see the dog.
Leonel Barboza, Dog Owner: "He says, 'I'm here to put him down. I'm here to kill him.'"
The officer told Leo Barboza there had been a complaint Bobby had bitten someone.
Barboza: "I said, 'Do you have any proof or anything?' He says, 'I don't need any proof.'"
So Leo got the dog while the deputy pulled out a rifle from his car. They walked a few feet from the Barboza's home where Leo's wife and his three year old son were inside.
Leo and the officer tied the dog to a pole when the deputy fired three shots. The dog then collapsed. Leo's son heard the gunshots and opened the front door. Meanwhile...
Barboza: "A bunch of kids just got off the bus and they were all on the street. All the kids were watching the officer shooting the dog. My heart was broken seeing an officer killing my dog."
The deputy then got in his vehicle and drove away leaving the dog bleeding profusely from his head almost dead.
Barboza: "I came back inside with my wife and hid. We were hugging each other crying about our dog because we were gonna miss him. He's been with us for five years."
That night Leo's father-in-law, who witnessed the whole thing, had a nervous breakdown and had to be hospitalized. When the family returned home from the hospital a few days later, they were shocked to see their dog alive.
Barboza: "My wife called me up and she's like, 'Hey, the dog's alive!' I was like, 'What are you serious?' I was happy my dog was alive."
The Teton County Idaho Sheriff wouldn't say much about this case except that it's still under investigation. He also said there's been numerous complaints about the Barboza's dog. But when I checked court records, I could only find one complaint filed last year and that was dismissed.
Nate Eaton, Channel 3 Eyewitness News: "Did your dog ever bite anybody?"
Barboza: "Not to my knowledge. No."
Eaton: "And this was the first time you'd ever heard of any complaint?"
Barboza: "Yes, this is the first time. I still think about it. You know my kid thinks all the cops are bad because an officer came and shot his dog. Honestly when I think about it I get mad too and I don't trust that officer any more."
The Barboza's took Bobby to the vet. He's now on medication to get the wounds taken care of. The holes in his head will be sewn up after Thanksgiving.
The family has hired attorney Josh Garner. I spoke with him this evening and he says, "If the facts are as they appear, the deputies behavior is disgusting, troublesome, and appalling. The officer needs to be held responsible."
Several sources say the officer is still on duty and still working in the county.
If you have a comment on this story, email us yourturn@kidk.com or natee@kidk.com.
I would hardly have taken my dog and tied him to a pole to let this person shoot him. The owner had a right to know if someone lodged a complaint against the animal and if it had bitten someone. Thre is NO WAY I would have led my dog to its death without proof and...it could have been done some other way if it were indeed true. Kill my dog with my wife and child inside the house? No way. This needs to be SERIOUSLY investigated!!!! I’m glad the dog is still alive.
The tough part here is that smaller counties, like Teton, usually don’t have animal control officers. And many patrol officers don’t have proper training or experience to handle animals. But as I found out from Idaho falls animal control, dealing with a vicious dog is more complex than you think.
“Rick: When is it okay for an officer to use their weapon against the dog?
Irene Brown: We would only use a weapon against a dog if the dog came at us viciously.”
But other than that, its just like with a person, officers can’t use force, especially deadly force, unless their directly in danger.
Like, it doesn't need to make sense in this world. Like, the deputy shot the Bobster three times with a rifle at close range and couldn't get the job done? The whole story is, like, you know, wow.
Just because the dog owners don't know their legal rights does not mean they have any. Barney Fife here on the other hand should not have been trusted with other 2 bullets.
I hope they try the deputy, find him guilty, then chain him to a tree and give the dog a gun. :)
NO2
This a-hole needs to be sued and fired.
You got that right. Most of what passes for journalism is juvenile.
Not all dogs, but most would just walk from their tormentor.
I agree he’s incompetent with a gun, amazingly bad in fact.
On the other hand, I lived for 9 years in a rural part of East TX, and believe me, this would not have happened (as stated in this story—I’m still waiting to see what both sides of the story are). And if it did, people would be outraged, and I suspect the officer would be out of a job.
Susie
Yeah, this article must have been written by a replacement. It makes no sense and leaves out most of the factual info you’d expect would be in a piece such as this one.
WOOF WOOF WOOF WOOF WOOF
November 23, 2007 11:04 AM ET
DRIGGS, Idaho (AP) - An eastern Idaho deputy has been suspended pending an investigation into a dog shooting.
http://www.localnews8.com/Global/story.asp?S=7399757
attorney Joshua Garner
The sheriff’s office confirmed Friday that Gutierrez has been suspended while the Tri-county Sheriff’s office investigates the shooting - which is protocol.
Garner said there was a busload of kids being dropped off at the time of the shooting. While he’s uncertain if any of the children witnessed the incident, he said he wouldn’t be surprised if they had. “Which makes this case even more outrageous,” Garner said.
http://www.idahostatesman.com/102/story/219439.html
The Idaho Humane Society has called for an official investigation
http://www.idahostatesman.com/235/story/218756.html
Barboza: “I said, ‘Do you have any proof or anything?’ He says, ‘I don’t need any proof.’”
So Leo got the dog while the deputy pulled out a rifle from his car. They walked a few feet from the Barboza’s home where Leo’s wife and his three year old son were inside.
Barboza: “I came back inside with my wife and hid. We were hugging each other crying about our dog because we were gonna miss him. He’s been with us for five years.”
That’s just the type of citizen Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot and Hillary love!
WTF!
Dogs first, people next,After all, the cop was just followin what his boss told him to do,...
Its tha GOV-EARN-MINT.
Leo Barboza filed the tort claim, a precursor to a lawsuit against a government entity, after he says a Teton County Sheriff’s deputy shot his dog three times. The dog survived and is recuperating.
The Teton County Sheriff’s Office says Deputy Joseph Gutierrez has been suspended while an investigation is being conducted.
http://www.idahostatejournal.com/articles/2007/11/24/ap-state-id/d8t4c5m80.txt
I’ve got a theory,its just a theory. The Barbosa’s are not here legally. Their native language is spanish. Its Idaho. Officer Guiterrez is also a native spanish speaker. He was hired so the police department can be more “seeeennnsitive” to the local illegal population. In officer Guiterrez’s home country you treat dogs and people this way.I think that might be a plausible explanation for how this went down the way it did.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.