OUTRAGE AFTER POLICE SHOOT THIS ‘WELL-KNOWN NEIGHBORHOOD DOG’

Neighborhood outraged after officer shoots dog

Neighbors in Valdese are outraged after a police officer shot a well-known neighborhood dog.
Holly Woody went to the store Sunday night. When she got home, she saw cop cars surrounding her home.
"They said 'we had to shoot your dog,' and my son started crying," Woody told WBTV.
Police had received a report of a dog on the loose.
Woody was not there to witness the shooting, but several neighbors were.
Sydney Mason lives across the street from Woody. Mason tells WBTV there was no need for officers to use lethal force.
"There was no need for violence or a gun to be drawn. What was going on? What is happening? Why is there a nine millimeter or .38 being pulled in my small neighborhood of Valdese, where there are small children? What is going on because this is unnecessary force over a dog that hadn't bitten anybody," Mason said.
The dog that was shot had to be euthanized because of its injuries.
WBTV reached out to the Valdese Police Department for comment.
The Police Chief said his officers felt threatened by the dog. He declined an on-camera interview in case the Woody family decides to pursue legal action.
At this time, Woody does not think she will file a lawsuit.
The dog that was killed did not bite or injure anybody during the incident.

OUTRAGE AFTER POLICE SHOOT THIS ‘WELL-KNOWN NEIGHBORHOOD DOG’

Neighbors in Valdese, N.C., are outraged after a police officer shot a “well-known neighborhood dog,” WBTV-TV reports. The dog later had to be euthanized due to its injuries.
The dog’s owner, Holly Woody, said she arrived home on Sunday night and there were cop cars surrounding her property. What they told her next broke her heart.
“They said, ‘we had to shoot your dog,’ and my son started crying,” the woman said.
Police were reportedly responding to reports of a dog on the loose and say they found the animal aggressive.
More from WBTV-TV:
Woody was not there to witness the shooting, but several neighbors were.
Sydney Mason lives across the street from Woody. Mason tells WBTV there was no need for officers to use lethal force.
“There was no need for violence or a gun to be drawn. What was going on? What is happening? Why is there a nine millimeter or .38 being pulled in my small neighborhood of Valdese, where there are small children? What is going on because this is unnecessary force over a dog that hadn’t bitten anybody,” Mason said.
Valdese Police Chief Jack Moss told the news station that his officers felt threatened by the dog and decided to use lethal force. He refused to appear on camera in the event that the Woody family decides to take legal action, though Woody said she doesn’t think she’ll file a lawsuit.
The dog did not bite or injure anyone before it was shot, according to the report.

Family sues police after pitbull Kincaid killed by officer

A Northeast Baltimore family sued the city and police department Monday after their dog was fatally shot earlier this year by a police officer who had chased a suspect into their backyard.

Kincaid, a three-year-old pitbull mix, was shot three times on the morning of January 1 after a suspect in a domestic dispute jumped a fence and hid in the backyard of Stacy Fields and her stepfather, Ed Augustine.

Police have previously said the dog lunged at an officer, who then shot the dog to protect his safety. Augustine and Fields dispute that account, saying the dog was barking at the officers but not otherwise acting aggressively and that Augustine was reaching over to restrain the dog at the time.

Baltimore police officials declined to comment on the lawsuit in Baltimore Circuit Court. The lawsuit also lists the state as a defendant, along with two officers who are not identified by name.

An officer fired six shots, hitting the dog three times — twice in the head and once in the body. Augustine was just two feet away and was "fortunate" to not be struck by the gunfire as well, according to the lawsuit.

Augustine and Fields also argue that after Kincaid was shot, the police officers joked with each other and told them the dog had to be buried outside of city limits. One officer congratulated the other officer on his marksmanship after the shooting, according to the lawsuit.

The plaintiffs are asking for $450,000 and attorney fees, though state law caps claims against municipalities at $200,000.

"The three year story of Kincaid's happy and carefree existence was punctuated abruptly by the harsh staccato of [an officer's] sidearm," the lawsuit states.

A Facebook page launched by the family called "Kincaid. Killed by Baltimore City Police." had more than 10,000 likes as of Monday.

Fairfax County cops execute another unarmed man

The Fairfax County Police shot an killed an unarmed man who was alone in his home. The police caused the situation, they escalated the situation and they handled it poorly and are expected to take several weeks to develop their justification story.

Police said they were responding….in force with a tank, a helecopter, a SWAT team, K-p units, and no less than 23 cops to a “Domestic dispute” but Geer was alone in the house. The victim of this police shooting this time was John Geer, age 46, a kitchen installer with no history of violence had to end in death.  He left behind two teenage daughters.

According to Geer’s father,  Geer had been throwing his estranged wife’s belongings, she is 24 years old, into the front yard because she was leaving him, so she called the cops who marked the call as a domestic dispute. She was asked if there were guns in the house and she said there was. The weapons were under lock and key

There's a Maura Harrington listed at the same address where the killing took place.

Neighbors recalled him as even-keeled, outgoing and helpful. A search of police records in Fairfax County showed that Geer was found guilty of drunken driving in 2010 but no convictions for violent crimes or more serious offenses. A neighbor said he talked to Geer in the minutes before the police encounter. He said that Geer didn’t say anything suicidal but he was deeply shaken about the impending breakup.

For forty minutes the cops demanded that Geer, who stood at his front door, for forty minutes "They just continued to tell him: come out, come out, come out," said one witness.

Geer had not showed the cops any sort of weapon nor had he advanced toward them. He made no mention of harming himself or others. Geer’s hands were up in the air, seconds before he was gunned down because they were on top of the storm door. He as shot in the chest while slowly lowering his hands. He had no weapon in his possession and there was no weapon within his reach.

Shot in the chest, Greer pushed his way back into the house and bled to death. The heros from the SWAT team entered the house by way of tank one hour later and found Geer dead.

Cop shoot five pound chihuahua because he felt threatened

Tape the cops and they'll kill your dog

Cops kill dog...again

Dog Shot by Police Serving Warrant at Wrong Address, Texas City Refuses to Pay Vet Bill

The City of Leander, Texas, has announced that it will not pay the veterinary bill for a dog who was shot by a Leander Police officer after the police came onto the property of James and Renata Simmons on June 17. When the officers entered, the Simmons’ German Shepherd, Vinny, came running around the side of the house and was shot by one of the officers who felt the dog was a threat to their safety.

It turned out that the officers were trying to execute a warrant at the wrong address in Liberty Hill. Vinny needed extensive veterinary care to save his life and the Simmons, through their attorney, filed a claim with the City of Leander to cover the $1,500 in vet bills.

The City of Leander responded on August 15 that it is denying the claim because the City is not responsible for the officer who shot Vinny in his own yard.  

Proof that we have too many cops without enough to do....again cut the budget and reduce the police force

For this needless gathering the Fairfax county police sent six cops for the dedication of a K9 statue. Why six? Why not one? In fact, why any at all. We are not paying...well...we not supposed to be paying the cops to play dress up parade.....six cops, three hours so this silliness cost the people of Fairfax County about $1,000, up and aside from the almost $200,000,000...that;s two hundred million, the cops already take out of the budget.

SC Officer Suspended After Police Dog Dies

   BENNETTSVILLE, S.C. (AP) _ A Bennettsville police officer has been suspended without pay for two months after his police dog died in a car of heat stroke.

Officer Robert Miller will  be placed on probation for 90 days following the suspension and can no longer be a K-9 officer…..yeah but the dog is still dead……. the dog, named Tank, died Monday when he was left in a patrol car with no water and the windows up as Miller went into the department to do some paperwork.

Fairfax County Police shoot and kill McGruff the Dog "We thought he was a black guy" cop says.

Pet dog shot by Crestview Police Officer

A pet dog shot to death by a Crestview Police Officer.A lot of people in the community want to know why it happened. The police department says the dog was known to be aggressive and charged one of its officers.

"Crestview Police say last Thursday they came to this home to talk to the man inside, knocked on the door, heard a dog bark. They asked the man to put the dog away the door opened and that's when the dog charged at the officer."

    The officer says the pit bull was showing its teeth and ran towards him barking.

He fired his gun four times.

The dog ran  to the back yard where it was found dead.

Virginia police officer charged with starving retired police horse to death

Officer Brian Davis and his wife Jennifer have been charged with animal cruelty for neglecting their horse Amy. Amy was a retired police mount. Davis, 34, was assigned to the K-9 Unit, and has been temporarily transferred to an administrative position pending the outcome of the investigation. Four years later Debra and David Kelly adopted Amy from the Davis family. Debra had been the former stable manager for the Portsmouth Police. Sadly by this time the horse was unrecognizable as the healthy and happy horse she had once been while at the police stables.

Georgia officer suspended after police dog dies in car

WOODSTOCK, Ga. — A police dog handler was suspended and reassigned to traffic duty after his canine partner died while left in the officer’s patrol car.

Chad Berry, a police officer for the city of Woodstock north of Atlanta, had been a police canine handler for seven years before he found Spartacus, a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois, dead in the car outside his home, Woodstock police Sgt. Randy Millgan said Friday. He said Berry contacted Woodstock police and the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office. A necropsy concluded heat stroke was the probable cause of death.

Officer involved in El Monte dog shooting incident promoted

EL MONTE - One of two police officers involved in the fatal shooting of a pet German shepherd in an El Monte family's fenced-in front yard last month has been promoted as police continue conducting an internal investigation into the incident.

Though not officially identified by the department, Officers Arlen Castillo and Kenneth Fraser are pictured in a surveillance video provided by the homeowners that captured portions of the June 19 incident in the 4700 block of Maxson Road.

Through its Facebook page, the El Monte Police Department has confirmed that Fraser was promoted July 1 to the rank of sergeant. Six other officers were also promoted.

"One officer involved in this incident did receive a promotion to sergeant; however the officer was selected for and notified of the promotion on June 12, well before the incident took place," El Monte Police Chief Steven Schuster said in a written statement.

"Since this is an ongoing investigation, we could not rescind that promotion because it would have violated the officer's rights under state law," the chief said.

Additionally, the chief confirmed the other officer involved in the shooting had been reassigned to a different division within the department but had not been promoted.

"This was a lateral move," Schuster said, adding that the decision had also been made prior to the June 19 shooting.

Residents Cathy Luu and her husband Chi Nguyen expressed outrage over the killing of their family pet, pointing out that the officers seemingly ignored "beware of dog" signs posted on their gate when they entered the yard to follow up on a report that the couple's son had run away.

And the initial version of events provided by the Police Department was contradicted by the surveillance video.

Shortly after the shooting, Capt. Dan Buehler said the reports stated that the officers shook the fence and took other precautions to check for dogs on the property before entering the yard.

But the video depicts the officers casually entering the yard without taking such precautions, with now-sergeant Fraser opening the gate and entering the yard, followed by Castillo. It was Castillo who ultimately ended up shooting the dog as it charged toward her as she stood on Luu and Nguyen's front porch.

City officials have since sat down to talk with the distraught family and extended an offer to help them obtain a new dog.

Both police officers remain on-duty as the internal investigation continues, according to department spokeswoman Valerie Martinez.

"I have asked that this investigation be expedited and I anticipate a finding in one to two months, Schuster said. Normal internal investigation take three to four months, he added.

"If the investigation reveals either officer violated policy in handling the (June 19) incident, we, at that time, may choose to take disciplinary action," the chief said.

Schuster said he has assigned staff members to review the department's policy regarding officer encounters with dogs.

"We have reached out to other police departments to find best practices and determine whether there is a need to change or augment our policies," Schuster said. "We are also referencing a recent report by the (U.S. Department of Justice) Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) that deals with this issue."

Police shoot dog: Ten days later, outrage still swamps California city

Public outrage over the fatal police shooting of a dog in Hawthorne continued to reverberate Tuesday.

The regularly scheduled Hawthorne City Council meeting was canceled Tuesday night because the city's website remained offline, a full week after it initially crashed from the large volume of visitors. Thousands of people from around the world sought to express their opinion on the officer's decision to shoot a Rottweiler as it lunged toward him during the June 30 arrest of the dog's owner.

The shooting was caught on camera and the video went viral as millions of people worldwide watched it online and reacted to the violence. The council meeting was canceled because the agenda and a video of the proceedings could not be posted online.

City officials said the website is expected to be back online soon after they find a new host that can ensure large amounts of web traffic won't cause it to shut down again. City Hall employees began answering phone calls again this week, after the flood of vitriolic callers prompted many employees to let calls go to voicemail.

"It was horrible," said one city employee, who asked to remain anonymous. "They were just calling to insult us. I don't understand why we were targeted. It's just been out of control."

Much of the public response involved angry threats against city officials and police officers. Three officers and their families have been temporarily moved out of their homes and given 24-hour protection because of death threats.

An online petition seeking prosecution of the officer who shot the 2-year-old dog named Max had more than 98,000 supporters by late Tuesday. It claims that Max's owner, Leon Rosby, was illegally arrested and that the officer shot the dog unjustly.

The department reported receiving 10,000 emails on the issue.

"I just tried calling these cowardly pricks to ask what they intend to do about the dogslayer," one person wrote on the department's Facebook Web page. "They hung up on me. Go figure. Keep calling until the man is fired."

Mayor Danny Juarez said his family unplugged its home phone at night because of the incessant calls and threats.

"My phone is burning up, it's unbelievable," Juarez said. "My family is overwhelmed. They're tired of this. But people keep calling. We're getting calls at 3 a.m. and they just want to vent on the phone."

Juarez has reserved comment on the shooting until a police investigation into the matter is completed.

Meanwhile, police officials released a second video of the lead-up to the shooting that shows Rosby arguing with officers, and one officer trying to take Max's leash before the dog lunges and he shoots.

Rosby is shown parking and getting out of a black car with Max, whom he held close to him by a leash as he confronted officers in the midst of an operation involving an armed robbery suspect who was barricaded inside a home near 137th Street and Jefferson Avenue.

As an officer using a loudspeaker tells the robbery suspect to come out of the house, Rosby walks up to the scene while music is playing loudly in his parked car. An officer tells him to move his car away.

"My car is OK," Rosby responds. "And I can stay here and watch. I'm gonna stay here and watch. You wanna take me? OK. For what? Y'all be breaking the law."

The video cuts to officers patting down Rosby after he is handcuffed. Rosby had put Max in his car, but the dog jumps through an open window and approaches officers, barking.

"Get in the car," Rosby yells at Max. "Do not shoot my dog! Somebody get my dog!"

An officer reaches out a hand to attempt to take Max's leash before the dog lunged at the officer, who then shot him four times.

Hawthorne Police Department spokesman Scott Swain said it is routine procedure for an officer to fire several shots when using deadly force, rather than only one shot. In this incident, a gun was used because the officer already had it in hand when the dog seemed to attack him, Swain said.

"Deadly force is your last resort," Swain said. "You're trying to eliminate the threat. We're not trained to shoot to injure. We're trained to shoot to eliminate threats. It's very infrequent, on the shooting range, that we shoot only one time."

Swain stressed that the video shows the officer attempting to corral the dog before Max lunges at him.

"The officer used restraint," Swain said. "He had a gun in his hand because he identified a threat. It wasn't until the dog lunges up at the officer that he shoots."

Swain said that Hawthorne Police Chief Robert Fager may ask an outside agency to investigate the officer's shooting of the dog because of the public outcry.

Investigators intend to seek charges of obstructing police business, Swain said.

Juarez said callers told him a Monday evening traffic collision that killed Hawthorne police Sgt. Leonard Luna was retribution for Max's shooting.

"There's just a lot of people out there who just don't understand," Juarez said. "It's mind-boggling. I got a call this morning from Florida and they said (Luna's death) is 'an eye for an eye.' For them to connect the two is outrageous.

"But the response I'm getting from people I run into at the store or at a meeting or in the soccer field is that they support our Police Department 100 percent."

Staff writer Kristin S. Agostoni contributed to this article.

 

Austin Officer Shoots Dog Inside Pet Store

Another dog killed by an Austin Police Officer. An off duty cop shot and killed a Pit Bull inside a Northwest Austin Petco.

Austin Police tell us the officer, Leslie Lyons, was working in Petco on an unrelated overtime assignment when a Pit Bull slipped out of its’ collar and began attacking a small dog. After multiple attempts to stop the animal, Lyons pulled her gun and fired.

Pet lovers at a nearby dog park in Cedar Park were stunned to hear of the fatal shooting.

"I would hope there would be another alternative in trying to control a dog,” says Corey Weiner, Cedar Park resident.

Austin Police say there wasn’t.

"She got them to move out of the way and discharged the weapon. At which time the Pit Bull dropped the Maltese, but did not go down, so she fired a second shot,” says Assistant Chief Steve Deaton, Austin Police Department.

Assistant Chief Deaton says the department fully supports Lyons’ decision to shoot and kill the aggressive animal.

  

"I don't even know what I feel about that. That's a hard situation. I think I see both sides. On one hand this dog was attacking and killing another dog, but I look at it as safety inside the store. What if it had ricocheted and hit somebody else?” says Kelly Bruneman, Cedar Park resident.

 There will be an investigation into this shooting, but police say it doesn’t appear any department policies were violated. Unfortunately Petco did not have cameras inside the store.

 We’re told the Pit Bull didn’t have a history of violence. We spoke with PETCO and they told KEYE the Maltese is being treated at a local animal hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.

In April 2012, an Austin police officer shot and killed Cisco, a Blue Heeler, after the dog ran toward the officer.  The case received international publicity and Chief Art Acevedo apologized to Cisco's owner.

After this case, Austin officers received training on how to handle situations with a potentially aggressive dog.  Officers are now receiving more in depth training. The training had been planned before this incident happened. There’s currently a discussion to provide larger cans of pepper spray for officers to use instead of resorting to shooting.

Police in California receive death threats after killing man’s dog

Police in California receive death threats after killing man’s dog

The police officers caught on tape last week fatally shooting a dog in front of a crowd of people are now facing criticism and even death threats from animal lovers across the nation.

A video of last Sunday’s incident quickly went viral, directing a wave of condemnation towards the Hawthorne, California Police Department.

Three police officers were involved in the arrest of 52-year-old Leon Rosby, who they say was disturbing a crime scene by videotaping it and blasting music from his car. While apprehending the man, Rosby’s pet Rottweiler, Max, jumped out of an open car window and approached the officers while barking. One policeman shot the dog four times, causing the writhing animal to slowly bleed to death on the street.

Since the cell phone video was posted on YouTube, the officers and their families have received threatening phone calls, emails and Facebook messages. In some cases, California residents who share the same name as the officers have mistakenly received threats. A shop in Glendale was flooded with angry phone calls because the storeowner’s name is the same as Hawthorne police spokesman Lt. Scott Swain.

“These aren’t just threats of ill-will,” Hawthorne Police Chief Robert Fager told NBC News. “These are absolutely threats to life.”

The police department issued a statement on Wednesday apologizing for the fatal shooting of the dog and the pain it inflicted upon animal lovers.  The statement garnered thousands of critical comments on the department’s website and Facebook page.

“Unfortunately, in the midst of this social media response, fallacies are being perpetuated and outright criminal threats are being made,” the police department wrote. “In the public forum of various websites, department employees have been misidentified as the officer who shot. This has led to criminal threats of harm directed not only at city employees, but also at similarly-named public citizens who just happen to live and work in our surrounding region.”

But the department’s apology did little to calm the criticism, and angry pet lovers have continued to threaten the police and condemn their actions.

“You know you’re a disgrace when people would rather see your officers dead than an innocent dog. Find a hole, crawl in it,” Facebook user Harmit Tamber wrote on the police department’s website.

 

 

 

Police Kill Dog While Arresting Its Owner; Video Goes Viral

Police Kill Dog While Arresting Its Owner; Video Goes Viral

A video that depicts police in Hawthorne, Calif., shooting and killing a dog as they arrested a man Sunday for allegedly causing a disturbance at the scene of an armed robbery has gone viral on YouTube.

The video has received more than 746,000 views as of Tuesday afternoon and shows four police cars parked at the scene of an armed robbery. A man accompanied by a leashed dog that looks like a Rottweiler is shown holding up his cell phone to record police as they stand on a sidewalk in the residential neighborhood.

Police approach the man, who leads his dog back into his car. The man stands a few feet away from his car on the sidewalk, where officers place him in handcuffs.

As they start to lead him away, the dog jumps out the car window and rushes toward police.

Police attempt to shoo the dog away, but when the animal doesn't leave, an officer shoots it multiple times, killing it.

According to local news website Daily Breeze, Leon Rosby is the man who was placed in handcuffs.

Rosby was driving through the area, then parked and got out of his car to record police at the scene of the armed robbery, the site reported.

Hawthorne police Ltd. Scott Swain said that he asked Rosby to turn down the music in his parked car because it was interfering with the police work.

"It's distracting the officers," Swain told Daily Breeze. "It's interfering with what they are able to hear. It's not just a party call. It's an armed robbery call. The officers need to hear what's going on with the people being called out of the residence.”

Rosby admitted to ignoring the police order to turn down the music but still felt the officers had no right to shoot his dog. He told the Daily Breeze he believed his arrest was related to both of his previous convictions for resisting arrest, battery, and driving under the influence. He also previously filed a lawsuit against the department related to a domestic violence dispute.

 

 

Rap video dedicated to Max, killed by Hawthorne Police

Rap video dedicated to Max, killed by Hawthorne Police

 

This new video is inspired skit by Actor/Comedian Claudie Jones and written by Claudie and Hassan Haze about the Dog killing in Hawthorne. Jaa Berry is featured as the dog killer. The Skit is putting a spin on the brutal dog killing by the Hawthorne police department. It's titled "Bitch Don't Kill My Dog."

Now I'll be the first one to admit I don't watch rap videos. But this one got my attention. Mainly because it has a good message inside the lyrics. I would like to caution viewers there's a lot of profanity involved.

Then again, dog lovers who are fed up with police killing their family 4-legged members are in a cussing mood these days, including those who create rap videos.

Some of the lyrics to this skit are

"I was walking outside and all my neighbors saw we know the cops is crooked so I record with my phone."

"It's time to go on a long long walk. It's time to put your bullet proof vest on girl. I mean, you know,you're black I'm black, the cops are out. We might not make it back. You ready?"

The video begins by showing the skit actors shooting a dog walking toward them four times at close range.

Then it moves on to Aiyana Stanley-Jones. Aiyana, age 7, who was killed by police when a Detroit police SWAT team raided her home on May 16. Police were at the home looking for a murder suspect who wasn't there. Aiyana died after being shot in the face by the officers.

The video goes on to display "Police brutality: Not just for black people anymore."

This video is spot-on with the way police are becoming in the U.S. Just as the pit bull breed isn't the only dog being shot, black people aren't the only race being harassed by officers.

It's open season on dogs, and any race is now eligible to be abused by those who are supposed to protect and serve.

People, protect yourselves, protect your dogs. By this I mean don't think your dog is safe just because it's in its own yard or on a leash. Don't antagonize officers. A 14-year old was allegedly choked and his 6-week-old puppy injured by Miami-Dade officers by looking at the officers the wrong way.

Police seem to be in their own little world these days. Protect and serve now means their department rather than the people. Keep away from police, and keep your dogs away from police.

Anyone agree with me on that one? Your comments are welcome.

 

Hawthorne police officer who killed dog has a past charge of police brutality

 

The Hawthorne police officer responsible for killing a dog as it's owner, Leon Rosby, is placed under arrest has been in trouble with the law in the past. In the case of Goodrow vs Hawthorne, Officer Jeffrey Salmon was one of seven Hawthorne Police Department officers charged with alleged deprivation of civil rights resulting from excessive force, denial of medical treatment and malicious prosecution, stemming from an incident that occurred at a party on July 21, 2006.

Hawthorne Police Department settled the lawsuit for one million dollars in case CV-07-5253 (VBV) on the eve of the trail on US District Court, Central District of California, the Honorable Judge Valerie Baker Fairbank presiding.

The Hawthorn officers responding were accused of beating plaintiff Anthony Goodrow when they responded to a noise complaint at a party. Andrew and his wife Karla Hernriquez Goodrow were both charged and falsely prosecuted to cover up police brutality. The charges against Anthony were dismissed in criminal court.

Karla, who screamed at the officers to quit beating her husband was arrested for public intoxication. Karla was only trying to protect her husband, who was forced face-down on the concrete and kicked. The abuse Anthony suffered by the police officers resulted in a broken jaw. Karla was acquitted when the case went to trial.

Evidence the plaintiffs were prepared to present at trial included a photograph of an officer appearing to kick the handcuffed plaintiff in the face and a surveillance video allegedly depicting officers high-fiving each other as the injured plaintiff suffered from a broken jaw.

In the federal case of Goodrow vs Hawthorne, the lawsuit charged officers with depriving the Goodrows of their civil rights, excessive force, malicious prosecution and denial of medical treatment.

Now we have another case involving Hawthorne Police officer Jeffrey Salmon. Although no abuse can be seen on the YouTube videos circulating that captured the cowardly actions of the police officers responsible for the death of a family dog.

What crime had Leon and his dog committed that created the need for the Hawthorne Police to kill the dog, who had jumped out of the car where Leon had placed the dog for safety while he spoke with officers?

Leon didn't resist arrest. He didn't fight the officers in any way. It appears the dog owner was speaking to his dog as the officers were firing bullets into the dog.

This dog had to have been very well trained by Leon. Look at the leash used in the video. This is the type of leash used on a dog weighing under 50 pounds. Only a well mannered dog could be trusted on this type of lead, as an eager dog could easily break it.

Leon most likely trained this dog from a young age, as you can tell by the dog on its final walk before being brutally murdered by officer Salmon.

The Hawthorne PD has issued a request for anyone who videotaped the shooting to turn over this evidence to be considered in dealing with these officers. Be very careful if you who recorded this decide to hand it over to the police. It's a felony in California to videotape police, punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

There have been cases, however, where the police were videotaped breaking the law where the judge has allowed the evidence against police to stand without the person who recorded it being considered a lawbreaker. Let's hope that will be the case in this situation.

One question comes to mind about this case. Why was officer Salmon still with the Hawthorne Police Department, given his tendency for brutality and lying in an effort to cover up a charge of police brutality?

What do the readers here think will happen? It's most like officer Salmon will be cleared of all charges. This doesn't make him innocent. We all saw in the video what type of officer this police department has.

Hopefully the public can demand justice, especially since this dog shot by police incident had many horrified witnesses.

Hawthorne Cancels Council Meeting After Website Crashes

 

The Tuesday meeting would have been the first time the public could address the council about the dog shooting

The Hawthorne City Council canceled its meeting Tuesday night after the city's website crashed because of public outcry over a viral video of a police officer shooting a dog.

Tuesday’s meeting would have been the first time the public could address council members directly about the incident.

Anonymous posted a YouTube video directed at the department last week, saying “we do not forgive…we do not forget,” regarding the incident where an officer fatally shot a pet dog in the street.

The department has said the dog was a threat to officers who had done all they could to avoid killing the dog.

The incident sparked protests outside of the Hawthorne Police Department Saturday.

The city clerk’s office told NBC4 that the regularly scheduled meeting would be canceled because it is required by the state open meeting law -- known as the Brown Act -- to publicly post the agenda prior to meeting.

"As you are aware, due to the public maelstrom of emotion caused by the police incident involving the Rottweiler, the city website crashed. The website has been down for nearly one week," said Mayor Daniel Juarez in an email to NBC4. "The Brown Act requires that city council agendas shall be posted on the 'local agency’s Internet Web site, if the local agency has one.'"

In Anonymous' video addressed to the Hawthorne Police Department, the narrator says the officer’s actions were “unacceptable” and the department was now Anonymous' "primary target."

The incident that sparked the controversy occurred on Sunday, June 30, as Leon Cordell Rosby walked his dog and lingered near a police scene at 137th Street and Jefferson Avenue. Rosby was shooting video at the time, and police had asked him to leave.

Rosby placed his pet Rottweiler, Max, in a car and placed his hands behind his back so officers could handcuff him.

The car’s windows were down and the dog escaped, as seen at right.

NBC4’s Facebook fans debated the dog’s intentions, saying Max was defending his owner. Others said the owner is to blame for not locking up his pet properly.

The shooting was posted to Youtube (Warning: Disturbing Content), and has since garnered more than 4.7 million views.

Calls and threats have flooded into the Hawthorne Police Department, according to earlier reports. Rosby publicly called for the threats to stop, saying "all police officers are not bad."

The next regularly scheduled City Council meeting will be held on July 22, according to the city clerk’s office.