There are actually a couple of things that made me go WTF in this story. That said, I am curious as to what the reaction is from those of you who like animals more than people. Seemed better written than most, thankfully.
Officer shoots, kills man who guns down police dog
By Michael Hasch
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
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A Knoxville man shot and killed a Pittsburgh police dog Tuesday before the canine's handler returned fire, killing the man in what city police Chief Nate Harper called "an unfortunate" but justifiable action.
The shooting outraged and angered the family of the 19-year-old man, Justin Jackson. He was pronounced dead by a passing paramedic almost immediately after the shooting that occurred at 6:53 p.m. in front of the UPMC facility on Arlington Avenue on the border of Knoxville and Mt. Oliver.
Harper said the dog's handler ordered the canine -- a 6-year-old German shepherd named Aulf -- to attack after Jackson pulled a gun from under his shirt. Both the officer, an eight-year-veteran Harper did not identify, and Jackson fired several shots, the chief said.
"They shot my son in the head. The officer told me, 'Our dog got shot so we shot him.' They killed my son over a dog," said Donald James Jackson of the West End.
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"My 19-year-old son is lying there dead, shot in the head, execution-style. My son's brains are laying on the street. This is crazy. I'm going to do whatever I have to do, file charges against the officers, for my son. It's terrible, the mentality they have," Jackson said as he tried to comfort his wife.
"We are not going to let them get away with this!" Anna Jackson screamed. "They will pay for killing my son. They are going to pay for shooting my son over a dog!"
Harper said the dog's handler and another officer, both in uniform, were driving on Arlington Avenue in a marked police car to respond to a report of shots fired when they spotted Justin Jackson. They stopped because they believed he was carrying a gun, the chief said.
"The suspect had his hand under his shirt. When the officer told him to show his hand, (Jackson) pulled out a gun," Harper said.
"The officer deployed his dog, and the dog did what it was trained to do. The dog was fatally wounded by the subject, and the officer fatally wounded the subject."
The dog's handler was placed on paid administrative leave, which is normal procedure, while investigators from Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr.'s office and county police investigate, Harper said.
The district attorney investigates all shootings involving police in the city. County officers were called because Jackson died on the Mt. Oliver side of the street.
Aulf, who was shot in the front legs and chest, was pronounced dead on arrival at a veterinary hospital.
Police dogs are protected under state law that makes it a felony to even taunt them."Preliminary indications are that the officer acted appropriately," said Harper, who spoke briefly to Donald Jackson near the shooting scene.
"I told him it was an unfortunate incident. Anytime a life is lost, it's unfortunate. I offered him the services of the department's chaplain," Harper said.
Roni Glass was walking along Arlington Avenue between Amanda Street and 18th Street at the time of the shooting. She knew Jackson, who worked for a Green Tree cleaning company.
"He shot the dog, and they shot him," said Glass, 15.
Bishop Otis L. Carswell, senior pastor of Potter's House Cathedral in Mt. Oliver, was driving on Arlington Avenue about the same time.
"We saw the officers. One officer was talking to the young man. The young man was casually sitting on the wall. The other officer who had a dog was standing about 10 feet away. The dog was barking and trying to get at the young man," Carswell said. "As we drove by, it looked like the cop who had the dog was going toward the young man with the dog.
"No more than 60 seconds later, we heard four or five shots, so we backed up. We saw the young man laying on the ground and the dog laying on the ground. Nobody paid any attention to the young man while we were there. (Police and paramedics) were working on the dog. They left the young man laying there.
"I'm very disturbed by this whole thing. I don't believe it had to happen that way. The cops just began clearing the scene, telling everybody to get away. Nobody asked if there were any witnesses. My wife had to alert the cop and tell him, 'You're running the witnesses away.'
"We want to extend our condolences to the young man's family. We're very hurt by this. We want to do everything we can in the community to curb the violence. I don't think it had to happen this way."
City police called for officers from the Port Authority of Allegheny County to help control the crowd and secure the scene. Officers patted down at least one young man overheard saying that he had a gun, but they found no weapon and did not detain him.
"I think people should be able to go to the bus stop without being shot," said Stephanie Bibey, 15, echoing a statement made by several bystanders.
Others saw the shooting as a tragic reminder of the general decline in the neighborhood.
"I think it's kinda scary. You can't come out at night. I think a lot of it is the drugs and guns and violence," Sue Carroll said.
"We gotta get out of here," agreed Lisa Fehr, who still lives a few blocks away on the South Side Slopes where she was raised. "As soon as my two daughters graduate (from high school). People are walking around with guns. We can't live here."
Michael Hasch can be reached at
mhasch@tribweb.com or 412-320-7820.
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Summary: Possible scumbag (innocent till proven guilty) shoots police dog. Cops kill the guy. I wonder if it would be legitimate for us to act accordingly, and should we? What do you think of the whole thing?
Lastly, I bolded part of the story. How can it be illegal to taunt an animal? A felony no less! Last I checked it was perfectly legal to give the police your middle finger, and hate them as much as you want. Why are dogs given such special protection?
