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Olson, however, says Detroit police have developed a pattern and practice of shooting dogs just for barking. According to an unredacted police report he provided, one of the officers who raided Smith's house, William Morrison, had shot 39 dogs prior to that day.
"That's a staggering number, and that's just one officer out of six involved in that case. Someone who's killed 39 dogs in the course of duty," Olson says, pausing, "is really hunting."
•••••••••••••••••••
Puppycide's Long, Sad History
Stories like Smith's happen all the time. They're so common that they've become known by the grim moniker puppycide. There's a whole category on Reason's website for such events, a 16,000-person-strong Facebook group that tracks local media reports of them, and even a database that attempts to collect information on dog shootings nationwide. But no one knows how many dogs are in fact killed by police every year.
A Justice Department official speculated in a 2012 interview with Police magazine that the number could be as high as 10,000 a year, calling it "an epidemic." That figure that is often repeated in media reports about dog shootings, but it's little more than a guess. A 2012 study by the National Canine Research Council estimated that half of all intentional police shootings involved dogs. There are no reporting requirements, unlike for other use-of-force incidents. Considering the U.S. doesn't even accurately track how many humans are killed at the hands of cops every year, it's no surprise the picture is so murky when it comes to dogs.
To shed light on the phenomenon in one U.S. city that's been hit with a series of lawsuits over dog shootings, Reason obtained the "destruction of animal" reports (see here) filed by Detroit Police Department (DPD) officers in 2015 and the first eight months of 2016. The reports provide a broader context for the individual shootings that have drawn local and national media attention. Unfortunately, they also illustrate the difficulty of getting public information from a major police department on how its officers use deadly force.
originally posted by: PorteurDeMort
I think that in some cases it is warranted. An unleashed, untrained, aggressive pit bull can be deadly. They have to make split second decisions that could be the difference between life or death. If they dogs in question were all Chihuahuas or beagles being shot I would say it was just a hatred of dogs but that isn't the case.
According the lawsuit, Smith tried to tell the officers she was putting her dogs away, and placed two in the basement and one in the bathroom. As the officers burst into the house, Debo slipped back upstairs. The officers shot it as it sat down by Smith. Next, they charged into the basement and shot Mama, who was pregnant and backed into a corner. Finally, they moved onto the bathroom, where Smoke was closed in.
Source
COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho — Internal police reviews found that a Coeur d'Alene officer's shooting of a pet dog in a parked van violated policy, but the officer is still employed by the department, the police chief said. The reviews concluded Officer Dave Kelley's July 9 shooting of the 2-year-old Labrador retriever mix named Arfee was not a reasonable use of force, Chief Lee White said Friday.
originally posted by: loam
Apparently, they're not as skilled, or their training programs aren't as good, as our postal workers who never seem to kill any.
originally posted by: Puppylove
a reply to: PorteurDeMort
Rare cases. I mean seriously. In nations where most cops don't carry guns, people own dogs, and the cops get along just fine. They don't need guns, and aren't killing dogs all over.
The truth is, for some reason, we have a bunch of trigger happy sociopaths with badges. Either that or we have chicken# pussies that shoot at the first sign of risk.
For this to make sense at all dogs would have to be a menace, attacking people willy nilly all the #ing time. I mean is there some kind of killer dog pandemic going on? People deal with dogs regularly every #ing day without killing them. I mean do you seriously think the cops lives are so threatened by dogs they should be killing them in anything other than the rarest of circumstances?
Little kids deal with dogs every day. So do old people, disabled people, etc. Why are cops so incapable of it without killing them?
originally posted by: loam
Apparently, they're not as skilled, or their training programs aren't as good, as our postal workers who never seem to kill any.
originally posted by: PorteurDeMort
I think that in some cases it is warranted. An unleashed, untrained, aggressive pit bull can be deadly. They have to make split second decisions that could be the difference between life or death. If the dogs in question were all Chihuahuas or beagles being shot I would say it was just a hatred of dogs but that isn't the case.
originally posted by: Zanti Misfit
originally posted by: PorteurDeMort
I think that in some cases it is warranted. An unleashed, untrained, aggressive pit bull can be deadly. They have to make split second decisions that could be the difference between life or death. If the dogs in question were all Chihuahuas or beagles being shot I would say it was just a hatred of dogs but that isn't the case.
That is a Load of Crap . Any Dog can be Subdued if found to be a Threat by using Non Lethal Techniques . The Problem is Police are Not Trained Correctly in Dealing with a Situation when a Dog is Involved . There also must be Laws put in Place to Protect any Animal from Police Brutality .