WHEELING, W.Va. – More than two
weeks after a police officer shot and killed its dog, a family remains
outraged.
While police continue to
investigate exactly what happened on a street in East Wheeling a few weeks ago,
where a German Shepherd was shot and killed by a Wheeling police officer,
protestors said they won't stop making a stand for justice until they see that
officer removed from his position.
“We have over 3,000 signatures
that have signed the petition for Officer (Kyle) Mull to be removed from the
police department,” protester Tisha Terry said.
As more people visit change.org
to sign that petition for Shadow, the family that owned the German Shepherd
protested in front of the City County Building holding up signs Monday.
The dog was allegedly deemed
vicious by the city in April 2013, but people who knew the dog say he was
harmless.
The dog was shot and killed
when police said they were flagged down by a person who reported they were
being chased in an aggressive manner by the dog. The owners claim their dog was
never aggressive.
“Part of my family is laying on
the ground with two bullets in his head for no reason,” dog owner Donna Terry
said. “That dog has never bit anybody. It was 5 years old. I've trained German
Shepherds for 30 years."
The police officer who shot the
dog also has protestors questioning his Twitter updates, pointing out to one
that said, “i really wish it wasn’t frowned upon to kill your dog.”
Wheeling Police Department
officials said they are thoroughly investigating the incident in a process they
call the Officer of Professional Standards Review
“We take it seriously,”
Wheeling Police Department Chief Shawn Schwertfeger said. “We hope to learn
from incidents like this so I'm just waiting to see what the final outcome
is."
In the meantime, police said
their investigation is almost complete. We’ll be sure to bring you the latest
as this story continues to unfold.
