El Monte Police Fatally Shoot Family Dog Inside Fenced Yard (video)

KTLA ^ | 6/20/2013 | KTLA

[Dallas59]

EL MONTE, Calif. (KTLA) — Police were investigating the fatal officer-involved shooting of a two-year-old German shepherd inside the fenced-in yard of a family in El Monte.

Officers came to the home on Maxson Road on Wednesday to follow-up on a report of a runaway teenager.

The encounter with the dog, named Kiki, was recorded by a home security camera.

It showed two police officers arriving at the home of Cathy Luu and her husband Chi Nguyen around 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Police said the officers shook the gate and otherwise took care to check if there were dogs present in the yard before opening the gate and entering, according to a report in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune.

[luvbach1]

Barking dogs usually don’t bite. snarling, teeth-baring dogs are more likely to bite. Police obviously are not trained to approach/calm barking dogs. They rely on their one-fits-all-situations directive: shoot if you feel threatened.

[Farmer Dean]

I'm sorry,we don't seem to be communicating well with each other.My question was/is,what's a damn good reason some stranger would discharge a weapon on our property?Keep in mind that my wife and I live alone here and both of us are of sound mind and body.Try to think of a scenario where a stranger would fire a weapon here.I await your reply.

[X-spurt]

And Ladies and Gentlemen, we’ve just heard from the LEO can do no wrong side.

[Gay State Conservative]

...and those situations have been used in recent years to to justify unlimited license to shoot living beings, human or otherwise...

But let's focus on *this* case,the case of an animal (not a human) having been shot.I,maybe or maybe not unlike you,place far less value and worth on animals than on humans.As I said earlier the standards for "engagement" for an animal should be far less stringent than for a human.Look at the video.That shepherd looked to be agitated to me.And remember,it's not a coincidence that the SS used German Shepperd's in their work.We see the dog go off camera to the left (at or near the front door) and then we see it reappear.We can't be completely certain what did,or did not,happen for that split second that the dog was off camera.But we can see that he was moving aggressively,at a good clip,just before he disappeared.There's not enough evidence in that video for me to be certain what happened but what I saw just before the shot says to me that the cop very possibly had good reason to fear injury.To me "injury" is the standard to be used for animals,"death" is the standard to be used for humans.At least some here,as I said,will strongly disagree with that position.

[Gay State Conservative]

...we’ve just heard from the LEO can do no wrong side.

Case by case,my friend.Case by case.The evidence of each case speaks for itself and for no other case.I'm not willing to say that my *mother* can do no wrong,let alone 500,000 American cops.

[Kevmo]

2) Introduction of the taser as a weapon for compliance, which leads to a mindset that risks no longer have to be taken
***Then why don’t they just taser the dog? Cops are going out of their way to be cowboy adrenaline jerks.

[Gay State Conservative]

Keep in mind that my wife and I live alone here and both of us are of sound mind and body...

OK,let's forget about hypothetical situations.I think you used the word "never" or some other "absolute" type of word...which is what initially caught my eye.Before you stick with that word,"never",consider this:

How many of the several hundred people who boarded airplanes in Boston,NYC and DC on 9/11/2001 thought that they'd never reach their intended destination? How many of the folks who entered the WTC on that same day thought that within a few hours they'd have a wonderful view of the NYC skyline as they floated earthward for about 15 seconds?

Bottom line....if I am legally on your property (for whatever reason),intending no harm,and your German Shepherd rushes me in an aggressive manner,I'm gonna take steps to protect myself even from a relatively harmless injury like a dogbite.Those steps might even involve gunfire.OTOH,if a *human* member of your family rushes me with the intent to bite me,without provocation,then I'm surely not gonna use deadly force unless I know that the person in question has AIDS,hepatitis or some other deadly,infectious,disease.

[Bon mots]

[Hot Tabasco]

That’s sad beyone belief! I tried to leave comments on the site but they were immediately removed by the “administrator”. What’s up with that?

[X-spurt]

Case by case, uh? Neither you, I or anyone else that was not there know any specifics. The point is TOO DAMN MANY COPS ARE SHOOTING TOO DAMN MANY FAMILY PETS!

It sure is beginning to take on the appearance of SOP within Law Enforcement. Until they start getting prosecuted, it will only grow.

[Gay State Conservative]

Case by case, uh? Neither you, I or anyone else that was not there know any specifics.

So the video tells you absolutely *nothing* about what might have happened? Not the slightest hint? Does your computer need adjustment...or do your eyes?

[I want the USA back]

Kick the door open, shoot the old man watching TV and shoot the dog. Kick the cat. Shoot the grandkid running for the back door.

Find out it’s the wrong house.

Say “your’e sorry”

Police work, 2013.

[Hot Tabasco]

That video suggests to me that the shooting could have been justified

What??????? The cops were responding to a call by the homeowner, not a crime scene.

Let me put it into perspective for you. Somebody vandalized your garage, you call the cops who come to your house to take the report. Cops come into your fenced in yard which is "signed" and subsequently shoot your dog which is barking wildly because of the strangers.

YOU'RE OK WITH THAT????????

How about waiting outside the fence until the homeowner can come outside and call in the dogs????

You've got about as much intelligence as the dumbass cop that shot the homeowners dog.......

[Hot Tabasco]

That video suggests to me that the shooting could have been justified

What??????? The cops were responding to a call by the homeowner, not a crime scene.

Let me put it into perspective for you. Somebody vandalized your garage, you call the cops who come to your house to take the report. Cops come into your fenced in yard which is "signed" and subsequently shoot your dog which is barking wildly because of the strangers.

YOU'RE OK WITH THAT????????

How about waiting outside the fence until the homeowner can come outside and call in the dogs????

You've got about as much intelligence as the dumbass cop that shot the homeowners dog.......

[andyk]

Tasers used for compliance in humans leads to a dearth of respect for other living tbings.

It all comes back to the attitude that cops need never take risks.

[Farmer Dean]

I did not use the word never or any other absolute type of word,please review what I wrote.I said that I would be hard pressed to think of a reason for a stranger to discharge a firearm in my house or yard.As far as the dogs are concerned,you’re safe unless you attack me,my wife,or one of the dogs.They may bark but they will NOT attack.Please show me where I used the word “never”.But I would never bite you,if that worries you.
The bottom line is,if I hear a gunshot in the yard,I’m going to react.And there had better be a damn good reason for that shot having been fired....

[arthurus]

I repeat, my reaction to this case to which you take exception, is conditioned somewhat by the recent history of the phenomenon. I did not say that this officerette was wrong. I said that in the current environment increasingly one almost automatically, and with some justification, assumes a probability that the act was egregious. The frequency of malevolent shootings is such that I no longer accept the official excuse. Guilty until proven innocent is not a valid court procedure but it is a natural when the practice of malevolent shootings of man and beast has become normal. That is the sort of thing that gives rise to justifiable stereotypes. In one's own dealings with the police it is always wise to consider the stereotype before calling the police to oneself or one's residence. There is almost always a reason for a widespread stereotype. Keep a dog or two in the yard as protection for your family, and don't call police unless they will come to you because you do not call them.

[arthurus]

And I do look at a lot of them. Too many also show visibly unwarranted violence on the part of the officer.

[OldPossum]

When is this crap going to stop?

It's going to stop once people start reacting to these shootings with return shooting. I hope to be around to see it. I say that because there is a real--and understandable-- reluctance to do what needs to be done.

[Gay State Conservative]

And I do look at a lot of them. Too many also show visibly unwarranted violence on the part of the officer.

OK,fair enough.I'd be curious to see one of those videos.If you have an extra minute or two perhaps you'd provide a link to one.And please bear in mind...as I said to someone earlier (can't recall who)...I'm not prepared to claim that my *mother* has done no wrong,let alone each and every one of the 500,000 cops (that's a wild guess on my part) in this country.And also remember that I don't see enough evidence in this case's video to *convince* me that the cop was correct...just that he/she could well have been correct.

In assuming that a cop was *unjustified* in firing his/her service revolver unless you see evidence to the contrary,you have surpassed me in the race for "The Most Discouraged,Dis-spirited,Pessimistic,Jaded,Disparing-For-The Future-Of-His-Country" Trophy! And I thought I had that trophy all wrapped up.