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MEMPHIS, TN - (WMC-TV) - A Memphis family is irate after a police officer shot their dog Thursday. But the police department says the officer was trying to protect a child. Quawan Branch, 9, described the attack by Memphis Police on his 1-year-old Labrador, named Pepper. "The police officer, he just came up and started shooting at my dog," he said. According to the Memphis Police Department, an officer was flagged down on Spottswood Ave. regarding a loose dog trying to attack a child. "I didn't see anyone flag him down. They must have done it a street over or...

Twenty-four hours after a police officer shot Lily, a 5-year-old Border Collie-English Setter mix, its owners still don't understand why the police officer was on their property and why he used lethal force. ... had just returned from a shopping trip and their two dogs had slipped into their truck, then into the garage, before re-emerging when an officer walked up the driveway... Asked by the officer to control his two dogs, Mark Boling urged him not to advance, but he did. "My dogs don't bite, They're not going to hurt you," Boling, 52, an electronics technician with a defense...

BUFFALO, NY (WKBW) - When Rita Hairston's husband died five years ago, she adopted a dog to keep her company and help her through an emotional time. Prada was 5-years-old at the time. The black Labrador Retriever became more than a pet, but a part of Hairston's family. A companion. Last Saturday morning, she returned to her E. Morris Ave. house in University Heights in Buffalo and discovered her home had been broken into and Prada was missing. There was a puddle of blood on the floor and bullet holes in the door of a bedroom where Prada slept. But...

The Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office announced Thursday that it would not be pursuing disciplinary action against a deputy who fatally shot a tethered dog earlier this week.Richard Woodruff was inside his Spartanburg, S.C. home Monday morning when he heard barking followed by a gunshot. The man rushed outside to check on his 8-year-old shepherd mix, Diamond, who had been playing out front while tethered to the porch railing."I ran outside and I see this guy standing over my dog holding a gun," Woodruff told Channel 7 news. "'I said, 'Why did you shoot my dog?' And his response to me...

THORNTON, Colo. — A Thornton police officer shoots and kills a family’s dog he claims threatened him Sunday. But the dog’s family and neighbors dispute that. They say the American bulldog-mix never even left their front yard. Police were in the neighborhood chasing after a man wanted on a misdemeanor drug charge. The man, Phillip Armstrong-Bowen, was already under arrest when the officer shot the animal. “He was on my screen saver,” says Vivian Girone, of 8-year-old Scar. Girone like any proud grandma shows off photos of the dog–in the car, snuggling with dad and out-cold on the couch. “He...

CLEVELAND COUNTY, Okla. A Cleveland County woman says she called a sheriff's deputy for help, but when he arrived at her home, he shot and killed her dog without provocation.

DECATUR, Ala. (WHNT) – A dog was killed recently as the Morgan County Drug Task Force served a search warrant. Now, the Sheriff’s Office is fielding complaints about the animal’s death. The dog was shot while the Morgan County Drug Task Force was conducting a search for illegal sales/possession of narcotics and marijuana at the Cedar Key Apartments in Decatur. Four people were arrested. Photo of Aubie, the dog that was shot (Photo: Justice for Aubie, a Facebook page) Someone has set up a Facebook page called ‘Justice for Aubie’, the golden retriever who was shot.  Be warned, the Facebook...

Police officers in Lake Charles, Louisiana shot and killed a family dog named Monkey while chasing a suspect, according to an online petition calling for the police department to fully investigate the incident.

Michaela McCowen says she was sitting inside her house Thursday morning when she heard two gunshots in the yard. When she ran outside, she saw her dog lying in a pool of blood. "She's on the ground and she's been shot and she's bleeding," said McCowen while standing outside her home in Athens, LA. McCowen's 6-year old Golden Retriever, Tera, later died. She was shot twice by a Claiborne sheriff's detective. "He saw the dog coming at him full speed, and showing his teeth. He told me he thought he was fixing to bite him," said Claiborne Sheriff Ken Bailey....

Decatur’s police chief said allegations of wrongdoing against two officers who fired as many as 13 shots during the Jan. 1 shooting and killing of a dog at Danville Park Apartments were “not sustained,” but the officers violated department policy by not activating their microphones. “I don’t believe the department has sufficient evidence to charge the officers internally. That stops short of exonerating them,” Chief Ed Taylor said Monday. Some residents of the apartment complex complained that the shooting, which sent at least one bullet through an apartment door, was unnecessary and put residents in danger. “I think this is...

Decatur’s police chief said allegations of wrongdoing against two officers who fired as many as 13 shots during the Jan. 1 shooting and killing of a dog at Danville Park Apartments were “not sustained,” but the officers violated department policy by not activating their microphones. “I don’t believe the department has sufficient evidence to charge the officers internally. That stops short of exonerating them,” Chief Ed Taylor said Monday. Some residents of the apartment complex complained that the shooting, which sent at least one bullet through an apartment door, was unnecessary and put residents in danger. “I think this is...

FLORENCE, Texas -- The Vybiral family are dog lovers; considering their four-legged companions members of their family. It started with Sassy, a six year old Rhodesian Ridgeback. Now this family is mourning, Sassy is dead. "She's crying, she's hysterical. 'There's blood mom. She's shooting guns.'" Louise Vybiral describes the phone call she received from her daughter Caren Friday afternoon. Caren says she was watching a movie with her two year old daughter Lilly when gunshots rang out. She thought they were coming from across the street. "Thought maybe Chevron was being robbed or something. I didn't have any idea what...

Chelsea Clinton has a problem. The former first daughter’s new job as a correspondent for NBC News has gotten off to a rocky start — and, after just two on-air pieces (thus far) for “Rock Center with Brian Williams” and the “NBC Nightly News,” she has become the target of withering criticism from inside the TV world. And it’s only getting worse. A piece headlined “Chelsea Clinton, TV’s Dork Diva, Struggles at NBC” that appeared last week on the media site buzzfeed.com has renewed questions about her qualifications for the job — and NBC’s motives for hiring her.

AUSTIN – The fatal shooting of a pet dog by an Austin Police Department officer over the weekend is sparking outrage near and far. As of Monday evening, close to 22,000 people had hit the "Like" button on a Facebook page called “Justice for Cisco,” the name of Austinite Michael Paxton's dog, which was killed by an officer.

Dover, TN - It has happened again - a companion dog has been shot and killed by the police. In this case, the dog's name was Girl - she was a German shepherd who was a constant companion to 73 yr-old Blanks "Buddy" Phippen. Back on January 21, Buddy and Girl were sitting in their front yard when a car crashed into a nearby utility pole. From this point on, details become a bit muddy.

DeKalb County, GA - On Tuesday night, a DeKalb County police officer went to a family's home on Silva Court in response to a domestic dispute call. When the officer went into the family's garage, he encountered a German shepherd who was on a chain. Upon seeing a stranger approach, the German shepherd lunged - the officer's response was to shoot and kill the dog. Tragically, after the damage was done, it was discovered that the responding police officer had actually gone to the wrong house. Right now, the officer is not facing any charges - there will be an...

Some residents at Danville Park Apartments are outraged over police firing at two dogs on the walkway outside their front doors. The residents said the shooting killed one animal, injured another and put the tenants in danger of gunfire that left bullet holes in doors, walls and a wooden deck around 2 a.m. on New Year’s Day. Witness accounts of the shootings contradict the reports of officers and a supervising sergeant. The shootings by officers Demetrius Hightower and Jarrod Birchfield are being reviewed by Decatur Police’s office of professional standards, police spokesman Lt. John Crouch said. Danville Park resident Steven...

A Wake County sheriff’s deputy shot and killed a couple’s 3-year-old dog Wednesday night while searching for a runaway teenager. John and Linda Super say two deputies came to their home on King Circle, looking for a 15-year-old neighbor who had run away and had often spent time with them. One of the couple’s dogs, Elvis, forced his way out the front door and ran outside as the couple talked to the deputies, they said. One of the deputies shot Elvis twice, including once in the back of the head, killing him, according to the Supers. “All we’ve got is...

GULFPORT -- Spook was chained in his front yard on 20th Street when police officers with a search warrant went to the house and one of them shot the 3-year-old pit bull, witnesses said. **** She said Spook was a gentle inside dog but was outside on a chain while relatives were outside. Clark was inside when she heard the commotion. “If the officer felt threatened by my dog, he had time to back off. I kept hearing my child saying over and over, ‘Please don’t shoot my dog,’” Clark said. “My dog was my best friend,” she said. Clark’s...

Matthew Spaulding says he and his family were terrorized at their own home by police who slammed his grandmother to the ground and shot his dogs-- missing his head by less than an inch. "Told us to get on the ground. I got on the ground they put me in handcuffs," Spaulding recalls, "Then they threw my dad to the ground and my dog Sadie was right here sniffing my head. She was next to me. They shot her. The blood got on my face and then she took off running behind me and they shot her like three more...