Clohe (courtesy huffingtonpost.com)

“On June 18, Katti Putnam answered her door to find her home surrounded by police and a tactical team,” the antimedia.org reports. “She was told they were looking for a fugitive, but as she was talking to them, an officer pointed out that they were at the wrong house. They had actually meant to raid the home next door. As Putnam walked to get her ID, she says she heard a loud popping noise.” You guessed it . . .

“I went inside to get my identification and I heard a pop…I looked out the door to the back yard and there was an officer with his arm raised and a gun in his hand. I immediately realized Clohe had gone outside.”

According to Putnam, [Department of Corrections officer Michael] Hughes fired another shot, which missed, at which point Putnam ran outside to put herself between the officer and her dog. Putnam recalls:

“I was yelling at him,…I said, ‘Why are you shooting my dog? What are you doing? You’re at the wrong house.”

Clohe, the elderly mutt who was already shot in the face, started to walk back inside, trailing blood behind her. Putnam’s partner, Erica Moreno, saw and cradled her.

Putnam’s neighbor, Jimmy Armstrong, who witnessed the entire event, stated in an affadavit that he saw Clohe enter the backyard. Armstrong stated the dog was not attacking or threatening any officer at any time.

He said: “[Hughes] shot Clohe for no reason at all.”

The most likely explanation: Officer Hughes was geared-up for battle, ready to rock and roll, hyped-up on adrenalin. Or worse. Of course, we’ll never know. Officer Hughes’ colleagues did not treat the shooting as a criminal offense. They didn’t interview the officer or administer a breathalyzer or drug test. Instead, the “tactical team” performed a strategic withdrawal: a simple RTB (Return To Base) to prepare for the raid on the right house.

Putnam also stated that they did not return to raid the “correct” house until a few hours later, which led her to question the urgency of the raid that left her dog missing part of her tongue and a canine tooth. Clohe had to have a bullet and fragments removed from her head and neck.

What’s it going to take to get judges to refuse to sign off on SWAT raids? OK, maybe the cops were looking for a dangerous felon. Still, it seems like they should’ve looked closer to home. [h/t SS]

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194 COMMENTS

    • These police guys need to add “Tactical Bacon” to their kit. Throw some bacon to the dog and make a new friend. That would eliminate 90% of these dog shooting incidents plus you’ve got a tasty snack while on patrol…

    • You’re probably right and that is really sad.

      My question is, what if this happens to the wrong person who loses their shit because the dog is their best friend or surrogate child… and fights back? If someone walked into a person’s house and shot their child, what are they supposed to do? If said person seriously injured or killed the cop who killed the animal, what then?

      It’s only a matter of time until this happens.

      The laws in this country are fucked up when it’s a federal offense (that is being enforced more often now) for two dating, consenting 17 year olds to sext each other but a cop can walk into someone’s yard and kill their dog (that they may care about more than people) with impunity.

      Justice. Hah.

      • 100% agree, I am one of those people, my dog is my furry child and I cant honestly say I wouldnt lose it.

        @Michael, I did not hear about this, can you link it?

        • I’m pretty sure their tactical armor doesn’t hold up well to an AK-47. On a botched raid like this, some SWAT team is gonna get ambushed on the follow-up and the death toll are gonna be through the roof. It’s a prescription for Waco 2.

      • What’s good for the goose is good for the gander?

        Nope, if you shoot and kill a police dog because it’s attacking you by mistake when they release it off it’s leash, It’s a felony in most states.

        When a police dog is killed while on the job. it gets full honors equal to a human when it’s buried, it’s considered a police officer.

        If you defend your home from a gang of masked invaders and their dogs, even if they picked the wrong house and you and your dog is killed in the process, oh well. But if you injure or kill any of those masked invaders and their dogs, your going to jail.

        So bow down to your masters, which includes their dogs.

        • So maybe a Westboro Baptist Church style picket of the police dog “funerals” is in order. Better yet, picket the school of this cop’s kid with a sign that says “Billy Smith’s father killed my dog”. As long as the corrupt court system protects these guys, they will keep doing it. What needs to happen is for theses cops to be held accountable in a way that personally affects them. I’ll be happy to donate for the First Amendment attorney to stand by with a camera during the picket.

      • They aren’t because they kill most of the animals they rescue within 3days. People in glass houses don’t throw stones.

  5. Cops become militarized SWAT badge heavy automatons. Hunters become snipers guerrilla warriors. Their home addresses are a matter of public record.

    • I don’t think executing the rogue cops is the right idea.
      First, it’s the sort of mob justice that allowed the Jacobins to rise to power in France.
      Second, it’s currently more likely to earn the animosity of the general public than their support. Especially if the media gets to spin it properly.

      • I didn’t hear anybody call for vigilante executions. Now that you mention it, though, Heavens to Betsy, what a dreadful idea. I hope that never comes to pass. Tsk, tsk, tsk, that would be a shame, now wouldn’t it?

        • It wouldn’t be a shame, it would be murder.

          Bring a bad cop before a jury, try him/her in a court of his/her peers (read: citizens.) But vigilantism is what we rail against here. We have to be and expect better than that, otherwise we have no valid grievance to air.

          As I said further below in the comments. That’s murder, and it’s never acceptable.

        • I agree, but like I posted above, what if someone fights back in the heat of the moment?

          I can’t even imagine watching my dog getting shot in the face. I care more about that dog than 90% of the people I’ve met in my life.

          I just don’t see any good coming of this if police departments don’t start policing up their people (no pun intended).

        • “Bring a bad cop before a jury, try him/her in a court of his/her peers… ”

          Ordinarily I agree, but what if the powers that be refused to charge them or even admit that what they did was a crime?

        • @matt r.
          Remember the swat guy who flash banged the toddler? You mean like that?
          While I agree with your point of that being murder and your avenue for discipline it unfortunately justice is rarely served. Also whatever happened to the cops who unloaded on the blue Tacoma during the Dorner “chrisis”.

        • Matt Richardson.

          Which is better. Vigilante justice, or no justice at all.

          Vigilante: (noun). a member of a self-appointed group of citizens who undertake law enforcement in their community without legal authority, typically because the legal agencies are thought to be inadequate.

          …because the legal agencies are thought to be inadequate. Hmm.

        • Bring a bad cop before a jury, try him/her in a court of his/her peers…

          Hahaha!! Thanks for that. That was entertaining.

    • So are you advocating raiding a cops house? Breaking and entering? Assaulting his family? Yes their addresses are public record. Go ahead, instead of brow beating, be bunt and say what you’re thinking.

    • Name three wars where a right-wing faction won, please. Hint: _Unintended Consequences_ doesn’t count.

      • I don’t know why that says “right-wing faction.” It should say “right-wing guerrilla faction.” I guess I over-edited again.

  6. Did the felon in question have an MO of impersonating a dog? Seems like the shooter was just intent on bringing pain. SWAT is not a delivery system for “ya had it coming” punishment.

  7. Let’s hear from all the “good cops” who would call out the shooter instead of closing ranks around their “brother officer.”

    Come on, speak up.

    • Better yet, how about they provide examples of times they’ve actually reported corrupt, brutal, and rights-violating fellow cops.

      • This….we always get the “few rotten apples” explanation…but the bad ones aren’t reported or held accountable by the “good ones”….they are also guilty by inaction.

    • Despite all the bullsh*t from the Hannibals and Sgt Patrick B. Hayes’ of the world, this never happens…

      Various members of the thin blue line ALWAYS talk about how good cops are the majority, and they always personally bitch about the “bad cops” my family does the same thing,)but they NEVER out the bad cops. Nobody ever files grievance, nobody ever testifies.

      Stand up and bear witness or be counted amongst the guilty. We’ll reach a turning point sooner than anybody is comfortable with and as my cop father always told me when I was a kid and hanging out with the wrong people, “You’re judged by the company you keep. You’re guilty by association.”

    • I’ve reported other cops, found them at fault for accidents, and have arrested and caused them to be arrested for DUI. If its a speeding stop, I can just give a warning. I’m not going to lie and go against physical evidence. Not only would that be immoral, but I form my opinions based upon evidence.

      However, I wouldn’t “out” the name of the rogue cop. That would simply expose him to vigilante justice. There is a complaint process in virtually every police department. I’d advise the citizen of the complaint process and work with themto get the bestowsible compensation.

      I love a good dog, and there is nothing I could do to bring one back. But I would consider getting another dog for the family, and might even throw in some of my own cash to do so.

      These excessive SWAT raids need to stop.

        • I’m a dog owner, and I love my Weimaraner. A lot. But human life still trumps dog life. Killing a human to get revenge for taking a dog is not justice. I think termination from employment would be appropriate if the shoot was indeed dirty or lies were used to justify it. The police department should fully compensate the family for the loss as well.

          As to justice in the face of tyranny, I pray that time is far off and that our nation can peacefully step back from becoming a police state. But if that isn’t the case, I’ve noticed that prices of guns and ammo have become quite reasonable again. A fellow would also do well to stock up on food, water, and basic first aid supplies.

          It’s no secret that this nation is on a downward spiral.

        • @Accur81

          We’re clearly on the same page here. Vigilantism isn’t justice. I called my dad to discuss this after posting a few times in this thread. It bugs me a lot more than most of these discussions do.

          Killing a cop for shooting your dog is murder. Let him/her be tried by a jury. Respectively, if a jury is warranted, any officer that doesn’t come forward and bear witness to a crime should also be tried. Even my old man agreed with that, and he came from an era where a little more “justice” was meted out by cops than is done now.

          As I’ve stated elsewhere; if we expect better, we have to behave better. I cannot and will not fault a cop for operating outside the law whilst doing the same.

          PS: Weimer’s are awesome. I already have a boxer, though, and one neurotic dog is enough for me. 😛

        • Ralph brings up a good point…property. Does the state have unrestricted ability destroy personal property…burn your house or your car to get a better look at your fugitive neighbor’s house…just stand by and watch and say ‘as long as everybody goes home?’

        • I hear a lot of griping about police on here but I haven’t yet seen a proposal for how to actually fix the problem other than periodic proposals for vigilantism. I don’t like this situation either but given the choice between SWAT teams taking out a few dogs and chaos with a side of disorder, I’ll take the SWAT teams.

          Thoughts?

        • That’s a false choice.

          Our country doesn’t “maintain order” because of SWAT teams busting down doors looking for drugs.

          The number one solution that addresses the root cause of all this police hooliganism:

          Repeal all laws for which there is no victim.

          No victim, no crime.

          Start with legalizing marijuana.

        • We’ve gone from roughly 2,000 to 3,000 SWAT raids per year in the 1980s to anywhere from 50,000 to 80,000 per year currently.

          That’s a 2,500 PERCENT increase at a minimum.

          The police in this country can continue investigating and solving “victimful” crimes much as they did in years past before the explosion in SWAT raids.

          Aside from situations involving hostages, barricaded individuals, known violent perps, etc., SWAT teams are a solution in search of a problem.

          The police don’t “enforce the law”…they patrol, arrest people, issue tickets, respond to crimes in progress, investigate crimes after the fact, etc.

          The judge or jury that hears the case against the defendant — they are the ones who enforce the law or not (as applicable).

          ————–

          And the police aren’t under any obligation to “protect us” — as the Supreme Court has ruled repeatedly.

          Our police departments are NOT what make us a civilized country.

          The composition of the whole citizenry is what makes us civilized.

          • John,
            Don’t forget that SWAT was originally groups within police departments and now even some schools have SWAT teams. And it seems that every governmental agency has at least one team. My question is who gave these organizations police authority in the first place? You just cant start a police force on your own even is you are a gov;t body.

        • Its obviously something very wrong with the entire profession. They close ranks no matter what. Go directly to Internal Affairs with a Lawyer in tow. Bypass the normal channels

        • All the cops in the video immediately assumed the role of gatekeeper. It was clear that someone walking in off the street to “file a complaint” wasn’t going to get very far with these guys. While there probably was a formal process for filing a complaint within their department, they sure as hell weren’t going to let these poor smucks know about it.

          There’s a better way. Even when departments have clear-cut complaint processes, your likelihood of having anything meaningful happen is pretty slim. When organizations investigate themselves you can generally assume that not much is going to happen, regardless of what happened. LEO’s however, are licensed by the state and, absent that license, their careers are over. The state licensing bureaucracy is entirely separate from police departments and is run by civilians who are not necessarily in alliance with the police. Licensing bureaucracies all have independent complaint investigation procedures staffed by independent investigators.. If you want to file a complaint against a bad cop, forget about going through his/her department. Instead, go after his peace officer’s license by filing a formal complaint with the state licensing office. Peace officers licenses come with pretty strict guidelines for maintaining professional practices. Although it depends on the licensing office, a formal complaint listing violations of licensing guidelines is often treated as a serious charge and can lead to revocation of a peace officer’s license.

        • Something to think about . . .

          “. . . Cruelty to animals is part of The MacDonald Triad, traits that often are demonstrated in sociopaths from a young age. It says an individual who is able to engage in cruelty to animals may have no conscience and no remorse for their behavior.

          Could there be a better occupation for a sociopath? . . .”

        • Garrison, I have no idea where you reside, nor what it’s relevant statutes are. In the vast majority of states I am familiar with, you’re not barking up the wrong tree, you’re not even in the forest.

          Most states have a POST (Peace Officers Standards and Training) certification. Once you have passed the incredibly low bar that requires, you are golden until you are convicted of a felony. In MO it’s called the Dept of Public Safety, and it has sweet FA to do with cops other than rubber-stamping the forms. Fill it out right, get the prize. AFAIK, knocking on any door in any POST state will get you sent somewhere else, because all they do is license. They don’t field complaints. Let alone take any action except post-judicial.

      • “However, I wouldn’t “out” the name of the rogue cop. That would simply expose him to vigilante justice”
        If he is to remain faceless, the blame falls to the organization as a whole. And in that case you can no longer defend this stuff as ‘a few bad apples.’ Either expose and purge this garbage, and be prepared for the whole organization to feel the heat, possibly to the point of replacement.

        The wagon-circling is beyond disgusting all too often, and coupled with an increasingly brazen culture of cowardice that would never be acceptable from non-LEO’s (no, I’m not allowed to shoot, taze, or etc. anybody/anything simply because I felt a vague sense of threat and needed to ‘maintain control’ of the situation), rapidly approaching the point of consequences. Not ‘revolt’ or anything as entertaining as all that nonsense, but votes to eliminate funding or disband entire departments. It’s happened on the small-town scale when things got just a little bit more ridiculous than they are in some populated areas now.

    • Sounds to me like the boys in blue have learned an awful lot from the boyz ‘n the hood – (1) shoot first and ask no questions, and (2) don’t snitch on each other.

  9. Azzwipes…man I get tired of hearing about this. I guess it’s better than a baby flash banged. Did the trigger happy PO-leece ever apologize? Oh pay? Or suffer any consequences???

    • Article last week said the SWAT team did something or another for the baby, I immediately forget what when the puff piece started in about how the team members were suffering.. nothing like the kid or parents tho…..

      • The SWAT team members will get over their suffering once the interviews stop and the TV cameras go away.

    • Apologizing shows weakness; harms the ability to ‘maintain dominance’ in future situations. We are to fear the police, you see.

  11. Fido v. 50 = never good

    Did the “wrong” homeowner get any of the wanted perp’s particulars so that she could better protect herself (being one family/safety aid down) or were they needing to protect that person’s identity?

  13. The solution to this sort of problem is rather simple. The officer who acted improperly and illegally should face the same consequences that you or I would face: he should be personally liable for restitution (pay for veterinarian bills) and the district attorney should prosecute him for discharging a firearm (assuming it is illegal in Flint Township to discharge firearms unless in self-defense) and malicious destruction of property.

    What is so hard about this?

    Note: dogs are property and thus the owners cannot sue the officer for pain and suffering or the emotional distress that they experienced.

    • Laws need to be revised then.

      I can’t go to jail or get a citation for beating my motorcycle – I can for beating my dog.

      Animals are either property or they’re not. The law seems to be contradicting itself these days.

    • I just have the one media account to go on here, which isn’t conclusive, of course, but let’s assume that it went down substantially similarly as depicted here. I agree with you.

      I’m not seeing reasonable care and caution, let alone professionalism, in the conduct of his duties. Officers who go rogue, who commit what would otherwise be a crime, should not enjoy immunity when their conduct falls outside a reasonable standard of care, just because they’re acting under color of official duty.

      Officers don’t want to be second guessed? Don’t want to be subject to personal financial and criminal responsibility? Well. Welcome to our world. Our civil servants are becoming (have become?) our civil tyrants. While that rarely ends well, it needs to end soon.

    • Unless it’s a police dog, then it’s a felony to injure or kill the “property”. Then that piece of property is given full honors when it’s buried as a police officer by it’s fellow officers.

      “Everyone is equal, but pigs are more equal” (“Animal Farm”)

      ( I couldn’t resist, but the idea of anyone coming into my castle and just casually killing my dog without consequence is very……..upsetting.)

    • Re: “serving a warrant on the wrong house is simply unacceptable”

      Let’s fix that for you.

      “serving a warrant on the wrong house is an everyday occurrence”

      Unfortunate circumstance. Mistakes happen. Besides, officer safety.

      Nothing to see here, move along.

    • That’s the part I really don’t understand. As awful as it is to have a family dog shot unnecessarily that happens in an instant. But when you’re planning something like this and have a good enough reason to bring in a tactical team you should have good enough reason to make sure you’ve got the right house\apartment\etc.

      Knocking on the wrong door when you’re looking for someone to serve them with a civil order is one thing… not a big deal, you inconvenience someone by having them walk to the door. This is in another category and I would think there would be someone to double check it just like now if you go to get surgery at a hospital they (are supposed to) mark which leg\etc is to be cut.

  15. but but but… The vast majority of cops are good people! Don’t come down on all of them because one or two are thugs and the rest just close ranks around him!

  17. As long as there is zero accountability, that police remain immune from all persecutions in cases similar to this and the public does not speak up LOUDLY to local officials including having people fired or voted out of office, this will be SOP.

    You cannot have change if people do not lead for the change. Something as simple as, if the police screw up as in this case, its and automatic $50K penalty and the officer in question and his superior goes a month without pay. Procedures will change, attitudes will change and they will be forced to be selective about how they engage with SWAT.

    I thought the whole “police militarization” moment after Ferguson would have done something, but that fizzled quick and I blame the media for that.

    Nope, this is never going to end unless people organize and push back. No accountability means game on as usually infinitum.

    • The problem with anything “positive” coming from ‘Ferguson’ is that all indications are that Brown was a good shoot, and the latest one in South City with the idiot who shot at a cop is even more egregious. What, the cop wasn’t supposed to return fire? Christ in a cracker, you should here the things nice upper-middle suburban folks are saying these days about the insanity of these “protesters” (protip: it ain’t polite).

      I wish this stuff was happening because of one of the hundreds of bad shoots, instead it’s about these two punk-thug thieves, who by all evidence, deserved exactly what they got. Which really takes away from reining in loose cannons with badges. More importantly it takes away support from mainstream members of the public who actually have jobs and vote and such. You know, those who could ultimately change this behavior by the police…

  18. Make the town swat team members pay out of pocket for the damages every time they go to the wrong house I’ll bet they stop going to the “WRONG HOUSE”.

    • no, they’lljust stop admitting it’s the wrong house – “we had reliable, but confidential, information that they was bad guys.”

  19. Again, where are the “Good” Cops that will confront their fellow sociopaths that continue to do this crap?!?

    Nothing will change until there is outrage within the ranks of the Police/Law Enforcement Community themselves, which I sadly believe will never happen because “Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely”.

    Working in Law Enforcement is now the modern day attainment of a Title of Nobility.

    • Working in Law Enforcement is now the modern day attainment of a Title of Nobility.

      Somebody is catching on

      • I wouldn’t go that far. Just for the sake of the comparison, nobles always had people that did their bidding, and I am betting they were rarely held accountable. The “nobility” would be the politicians. They are the ones that refuse to hold accountable people acting in their name.

        • If the politicians are the nobles, then the cops are the knights.

          And we’re the serfs living in a feudal culture.

  20. This will end when a owner calmly studies the man who shot his dog, burns his face into his brain walks, and at a later date, of his own choosing, shoots the officer in the ass.

    Someone pointed out on this board that mailmen encounter dogs everyday and not one has been shot. One needs no more evidence that local police have lost there minds.

    • Not really true. Only police shooting I ever actually witnessed was around 30 years ago, in East Austin, when a mailman called the cops because of a vicious dog preventing him from doing his job, and the policeman shot the dog. There are dogs which have been trained to be vicious, and shooting them is reasonable, I’d bet I would do it faster than a cop, if one came after me.

      • If that mean, mean dog prevented the postman from delivering his junk mail, all he had to do was walk away. Don’t deliver the mail. Tell the owner where he can pick it up. It’s perfectly legal and the dog would not “need” killing.

        Let’s face it — the cop shot the dog because it was fun.

        • No kidding. I talk with a few folks who carry the mail and all they do is not deliver. That’s it. Most guys have never even sprayed a dog, let alone even filed a complaint.

          Shooting a dog because some mailman can’t walk up to the house? What kind of sick effs are these people? Fine, no mail for you. Kill the dog over something so irrelevant? WTF…

        • Exactly — and according to the postmaster here, that’s official policy; you don’t bother the dog, but you don’t have to deliver the mail if you feel threatened.

  21. The chain of accountability here is as follows:
    Voters > Mayor > Police Chief > Bad cop.

    We need to hold our elected officials responsible for the actions of their appointees. If this dog shooter is allowed to remain with that department, our anger needs to be directed at the elected officials above him in the chain of command.

    If we don’t do that, well, elections have consequences.

    • That chain of accountability could be short-circuited, either by making the Police Chief an elected office, or by eliminating the Police Chief office, and making all LEO subordinate to the County Sheriff.

      Use of SWAT for warrant service should require explicit sign-off, should be strictly limited to violent felons who pose an imminent threat to the community (not to the police officers), and should be fully disclosed to the public, with all details, unredacted.

      Also (still): no-knock raids are unconstitutional, and should never happen.

      There would be far more public outrage if the public knew:

      1) How frequent such SWAT raids are (2 per day, on average)
      2) How often they hit the wrong house/target
      3) How many innocents (human and animal) were injured or killed

  23. These cops committed several felonies and need to stand trial for them. If you’re not at the address on the warrant, your actions are not legal. The justice system needs to start recognizing this and acting on it before public outcry forces them to or an even larger portion of society will no longer see it as a “justice” system. I don’t want to live in a society where a large portion of the population views defiance of “the law” in general as a moral good, do you?

  24. Since these para-militaries have this driving need to kill something, draft them all to go fight ISIS.

  25. If so many drug dealers didn’t have pit bulls to attack the first person the enter the yard, cops wouldn’t be so quick to shoot the first dog to exit a house. Just last week a man was sentenced to 15 years to life because his four pit bulls jumped a fence and mauled to death a 68 year old lady just walking down the sidewalk. It was found that he had drugs in his house that he sold.
    At least, according to the story, they knocked on the door.

    • Does this look like a pit bull to you?

      Did you miss the part where the dog did not attack at all, not even bark?

      And did you miss the part where they were in the wrong fucking yard? AGAIN?

      And what happened to using pepper spray and such? It works great on bears, it sure would do wonders on dogs, and no need to kill anything.

  26. Where is PETA on these types of issues? I hear them complaining about cheeseburgers and trying to get dolphins declared “people”, but haven’t heard a peep about shameless execution of man’s best friend?

    • The officer WAS on the dog owners property illegally, so that shouldn’t even matter. Your dog should be expected to attack armed strangers on your property.

      • Dogs can tell if someone is armed? Dogs should not attack just because someone is on the property. What if a neighbors child is getting a ball out of the yard? When I was three, I was nearly killed by a dog that belonged to a cousin, I was not intruding or agitating the dog and it just snapped and tore my head up. Now, I’ve had dogs since then and will probably get another soon as my son wants one but I have no mercy for vicious dogs and there owners.
        Oh, I certainly cannot say or try to imply that either is the case in this story.

        • Dogs can tell if someone is armed?

          Actually, a lot of dogs can. All of mine could, even when I didn’t train them that way. They may not know what a gun is, but they know that the big black thing hanging from a man’s hip or, worse, in his hand isn’t a party favor.

        • You bet they can. My property is just that. If you need to enter my property you can ask permission, otherwise you’re trespassing. Lots of dogs are very sensitive to the state of mind a person is in, if they are ancy, nervous, or in a threatening posture (like you’d expect an armed thug either of the criminal or LEO variety) they are likely to treat you very differently. If you enter someone’s property without permission and get attacked your like the burglar who breaks in and sues because he got cut on your broken window.

    • Yeah, dog was probably standing in the officer’s way.

      “Damn dog, I’m not going to walk around you.” Blam!

  29. awww man, that is so wrong. And they wonder why they have such a bad reputation. What they don’t realize is that doing stupid shit like this only makes it harder on them the next day on the job, when people lose their trust and confidence in the ‘authorities’ because of completely unnecessary, hostile acts like this …and throwing flashbangs at toddlers, and tazing people in the back while they are calmly walking away, etc.

  30. WRT to RF’s query about “why judges sign off on SWAT raids,” the short answer is that they don’t. They sign off on search warrants and arrest warrants, and in unusual circumstances occasionally sign off that they may be served in “no knock” operations, but the problem is that there’s NOT a general requirement for the po-po to get judicial blessing before they go get tooled up and play soldier. Thus we see situations like this that could and should have been dealt with by a bit of basic police work, rather than an opportunity to play with the fun toys.

    As I’ve said before, if you want to solve the problem:

    (1) Require judicial sign offs (with real proof of the need for extraordinary force required) for all non-exigent SWAT operations;
    (2) Strict liability (with no immunity) for all concerned if (1) is not followed or if the proof used to obtain the warrant is false;
    (3) No immunity from damages suits for “mistakes” that occur during SWAT operations (but with a “loser pays” attorneys fee provision to mitigate the risk of frivolous accusations).

    LKB

  31. Cops, and cop defenders will complain that these ‘isolated incidents’ give all cops an undeserved bad name. But until these all to frequent events are treated as what they are (negligence or murder) then the people will continue to view police in an us v. them context.

    Meanwhile we have to decide what’s worse, the shocking amount of sociopaths that make it into our police force, or the level with which their behavior is tolerated.

  32. Are they immune from civil suit, I wonder? If police mistakenly come to my house and shoot my dog, I’m suing the county/state that employs them.

    • I’ve been trying to follow these cases, and it seems the largest amount of money anyone has gotten was 500$

      • Wow, that’s interesting. I would think a Jury would be more sympathetic to such an unwarranted act and award a significant amount of recompense. Many folks have dogs and can imagine how upset they would be if they shot their dog in the face.

  33. There’s no news stories about open carriers (or concealed carriers for that matter) killing dogs. Imagine if everyone carrying a gun automatically shot any dogs present. There would be a major shit storm. So let’s require the same level of responsibility from LEO’s that we assume from civilians.

  34. They answer is simple. This shit will stop when they lose qualified immunity for incompetence. Right now there are no repercussions for something as stupid as going to the wrong address and terrorizing people. When the cops are held civilly liable, and not under some department insurance policy, they will be more careful. When they can lose their pension, savings, homes, cars… Things will change. Suddenly the incompetent will get competent. I would also help if collective bargaining agreements were outlawed for public employees, it would be much easier to get rid of incompetent boobs and people who don’t want to work.

    • This shit will stop when they lose qualified immunity for incompetence.

      This shit will probably not stop until they are afraid to do this shit.

  35. All i know i am sleight at 6’1″ 170ish lbs and have no training in any sort of physical combat discipline, and when my neighbors’ pit bull (one of the few bad ones..not the breeds fault, they treat the poor dog like crud) broke through their front window and came after me and my schnoodle, i did NOT need to shoot it to control the situation.

    but hey, officer safety

  36. I know a dog’s life isn’t equal to a humans. But if some man, in a state KGB/SS costume or not shot my dog. I would calmly retrieve my long gun and die with my dog. Avenging him with my and the offending parties last breath. I have more love, devotion and trust to my dog and he I than anything else on this planet.

  37. So why isn’t the officer being charged with negligent discharge, animal cruelty, criminal threatening, etc. etc. If someone unjustly starts shooting at your family members, we should have the right to defend our homes…I don’t care what badges they have!

  38. I love how the urgency always disappears in these wrong address raids.

    Its so important to gear up and charge in half cocked and half assed that we must tolerate flash banged babies and dead dogs but when they regroup to approach the right address where the dangerous felon lives it’s just a knock on the door by a uniformed officer. So where’d the nonsensical officer safety excuse go?

    For how important police work allegedly is they sure embrace stupidity wholeheartedly.

  39. Now that the Supreme Court has ruled that the protest activities of Westboro Baptist Church are constitutionally protected, maybe the same tactics should be brought to bear against the department until the victim in this case gets restitution. God Hates Dog-Killers!

    I have said for years that lack of a provision in the law to force the court to pursue a criminal complaint is a huge oversight. The fact that prosecutors are free to ignore whatever they want is unacceptable. We need only look back to the civil rights abuses of the 60’s to see the results.

  40. I used to deliver pizza, somehow I almost ALWAYS found the correct house I was delivering to. I dont think wearing my PC, having a slung rifle and showing up in an MRAP would have made much of a difference on me being able to locate a house I had never been to before.

    No civil immunity and a fvckin mandatory body cam on every cop in America.

  42. Many people including myself have dogs, consider them to be akin to a family member, and would risk their lives to protect them – just as they would for us. If police aren’t trained on that fact, they are more stupid than anyone thought.

  43. I don’t know what I would do if somebody shot my dog. Reading this story almost had tears, only anger at the event stopped them.

    Impunity for these cops. Paid leave or relocation.

    As bad as “snitched get stitches” mentality that the force looks the other way.

    I respect most police and sheriffs (especially Sheriff David Clark and Sheriff James Craig) and am a law abiding citizen.

    But for these Rambo cops, I do not have goodwill, if and when they act like this. As it is not serving and protecting the public. It is self serving and IMO criminal behavior. I thought they need to have restraint and good judgement. Not hide behind “get home safely”.

    Plus, if somebody shot a police dog in line of duty it is a huge penalty. Why should their dogs “more important” than a non/policeman? I know they are of value in specialized ways, but pet dogs are like family to most owners. And have their own value in just being that. Even if not a “working dog”.

    Yeah, Chief, it’s okay, I shot a “bum dog”. It can’t perform sniff and search at checkpoints. Just sleeps all day if not barking, yada yada yada.

  44. How are police departments not getting sued left and right for this sort of thing? When will we start to hold the police personally accountable for this sort of thing?

  45. “What’s it going to take to get judges to refuse to sign off on SWAT raids?”

    Cops are going to have to die first and it is going to have to be justified. As long as babies get flash banged in the face, as long as a grandmother from Atlanta gets killed in her home, as long as pets get murdered by SWAT, nothing will change. Also, when cops get killed, and the shooter gets killed or prosecuted, nothing will change. An innocent home owner is going to have to win one time and get acquitted. Then and only then will they start to give a shit.

  46. My dog would attack a damn grizzly bear to defend me. Perhaps some people don’t realize what bond that creates. Essentially, they shot someone’s family member in the face. They have to understand the implications associated with such actions.

  49. Strange world isn’t it. Vick kills a dog for not fighting well and people want to execute him. Cops raid the wrong house because they are to stupid to actually read the warrant and kill family pets and home owners and they are called hero’s.

    • They’re heroes because they’re out there day and night personally protecting every one of us, ensuring that no harm befalls us…oh…wait…never mind.

  50. How about a few “raids” on the judge’s house? Sounds kinda extreme doesn’t it, but we didn’t ask for this war…

    • A SWAT team mistakenly raided a Maryland mayor’s house and killed his two dogs back in 2008.

      Hasn’t made much of a difference.

      Police Raid Berwyn Heights Mayor’s Home, Kill His 2 Dogs
      http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/30/AR2008073003299.html

      Spokesmen for the Sheriff’s Office and Prince George’s police expressed regret yesterday that the mayor’s dogs were killed. But they defended the way the raid was carried out, saying it was proper for a case involving such a large amount of drugs.

      Sgt. Mario Ellis, a Sheriff’s Office spokesman, said the deputies who entered Calvo’s home “apparently felt threatened” by the dogs.

        • Oh man, reading that article I really did need some hope afterward

          “”My government blew through my doors and killed my dogs,” Calvo said. “They thought we were drug dealers, and we were treated as such. I don’t think they really ever considered that we weren’t.”

          Calvo described a chaotic scene, in which he — wearing only underwear and socks — and his mother-in-law were handcuffed and interrogated for hours. They were surrounded by the dogs’ carcasses and pools of the dogs’ blood, Calvo said.”

          “”We’re not in the habit of going to homes and shooting peoples’ dogs,” Ellis said. “If we were, there would be a lot more dead dogs around the county.”

          A couple gems from the link.

        • When the SWAT raid on Mayor Calvo’s happened, I remember thinking that it was a rare, one-off, statistical anomaly caused by some reckless, yahoo sheriff’s department that went completely unhinged but would be slapped down and people would be held accountable.

          Once I saw the outcome of that case, my antenna went on high alert.

          In the six years since, I’ve continued to try to give police officers, police departments and local elected officials the benefit of the doubt when it comes to police tactics and “errors.”

          Looking back, the raid on Mayor Calvo was my wake-up call and marked the turning point in how I view policing, so-called criminal justice, the war on drugs, the role of government, etc.

          Alas, after six years of paying close attention to what’s happening in this country, especially as it relates to the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, the police (and politicians, bureaucrats, etc.) have very little credibility left with me.

          If the police have lost so much credibility with a very average, boring, law-abiding citizen like me, then we’ve turned a corner in this country.

          But all is not necessarily dark.

          As more and more people wake up, organize (e.g. Tea Party groups, gun-rights groups, etc.) and take peaceful action (even individual action – think Edward Snowden), a new dawn may yet come for Liberty in this country.

          As we pull together to reclaim the Constitution and a limited government, we may one day relate to Benjamin Franklin and his vision of a rising sun. During the Constitutional Convention, he had often looked at the painted sun on the president’s chair and wondered “…whether it was rising or setting. But now at length I have the happiness to know that it is a rising and not a setting sun.”

        • I agree John G. America was unique in it’s founding. The re-awakening of our citizens and the rolling back of gun control laws to begin to reclaim what has been lost is probably as rare in history as the Jews reclaiming their homeland after two thousand years of the diaspora.

          We can hope, with G-ds help, to continue to reclaim or birthright.

        • Radley Balko did a good coverage of that story in his book, “Rise of the Warrior Cop: The Militarization of America’s Police Forces”. And here is an excerpt that covers it. Personally, the main takeaway from this has been this quote:

          “In 2010 Sheriff Michael Jackson was asked during his campaign for Prince George’s County executive if he had any regrets about the raid. His response: “Quite frankly, we’d do it again. Tonight.”

          They know what they’re doing. They know they’re jack-booted thugs, and they are proud of it. Keep that in mind when you figure out how to properly treat them.

          One good thing that came out of that whole Calvo story is that he successfully pushed for a law that mandated gathering and publication of statistics in Maryland on how often SWAT raids are performed, and what they’re used for. It doesn’t contain anything that people who track this issue don’t already know – SWAT is used insanely often (at least once every day); it is mostly used to serve warrants, rather than in hostage or crime-in-progress situations; and most of those warrants are for nonviolent crimes, including misdemeanors.

          One bad thing is that no further changes came out of these reports, even though the picture that they paint is obviously bad. That’s why it is important that you personally do your part to spread the awareness of the issues with SWAT.

          Speaking of which, my earlier offer still stands: I will buy the book as a gift to anyone who wants to read it. Just add it to your public Amazon wishlist (you can create a separate one just for that purpose) and post the link here, and I’ll gift it to you.

  52. It’s election season. Find out how the judges in your district feel about no knock raids and weak search warrants. Then show up.

  54. At the very least fire his ass.

    The last time a pitbull ran at me at work I said “come here buddy” and gave it a scratch behind the ears and he went on his merry way. It’s not that difficult.

    • Or shoot him. I had the same experience with a pit bull. On the other had, I had a Weimaraner try to rip my right bicep off for no apparent reason. I wish I had been carrying at the time. I still have ugly scars from that little episode.
      Stupid bitch had FOUR Weimaraners on leashes. Imagine one 110 pound woman trying to control 300 pounds of dog. The one who bit me had a dig-in choke collar on. Apparently he had been a problem before.

  55. The utterly farcical lack of accountability for actions in police departments that would end any real soldier’s career and the elitist attitude said lack breeds disturbs me thoroughly. If a marine in Afghanistan threw a flash-bang through the window of a suspected Taliban member’s home and it permanently disfigured his 10 month old son, he’d be thrown in prison. Some dipstick on a swat team actually does this and we hear nothing but crickets in the courthouse. The contrast is sickening.

    These rogue officers are classic schoolyard bullies. When nobody will stand up to their thuggery and they’re surrounded by people who either cheer them on or turn the other cheek, they think themselves infallible gods and nothing less. Start docking their pay, putting them in desk jobs for life, firing them, throwing them in prison, etc and the attitude will change right quick. “Qualiffied immunity” is the ripest plumb of potential abuses I’ve ever seen; it needs to be plucked from the tree ASAP.

    • “These rogue officers are classic schoolyard bullies. When nobody will stand up to their thuggery and they’re surrounded by people who either cheer them on or turn the other cheek, they think themselves infallible gods . . .”

      Or, they’re sociopaths. I doubt that records of pet shootings are kept but, if there were, I have a feeling that cops who shoot animals probably stand out in a department. That might be a good indicator that they’re carrying around some extra psychological baggage that ought to be looked into.

      • Most psychopathic killers get their start torturing and killing animals. Really makes you wonder about these cops that seem to get off on shooting pets.

      • Police departments need to do a better job screening out sociopaths.

        The last thing we need to do is give them a badge and a gun.

        16 Questions That Might Tell You Whether You’re A Sociopath
        http://www.businessinsider.com/questions-that-diagnose-whether-youre-a-sociopath-2013-7

        A new book called “Confessions of a Sociopath; A Life Spent Hiding in Plain Sight,” written by pseudonymous author M.E. Thomas, describes what it’s like to be a sociopath — someone who lacks the ability to feel or sympathize with others.

        Sociopaths can be sexy and beguiling; they take risks the rest of us don’t and come across as bold and exciting. Socially, they are often leaders, the life and soul of the party.

        In her book, Thomas describes many disturbing episodes from her own life, including the time she let a baby possum drown in her swimming pool because she couldn’t be bothered to fish it out with the net. In another chapter, she describes a recurring dream in which she kills her father with her bare hands — because she hates him.

        Thomas is also a successful law professor, married, and teaches Sunday school. Or so she says — grandiose lying is one of the characteristics of being a sociopath.

  56. My dog is my son – I couldn’t care less if any regular folks, friends, family, or cops can’t understand that. I actually live in fear this happens to me. I have read simply way too many accidents happening , police at the wrong house, shooting too many innocent dogs, and nothing happens.

    It came close to happening to me actually. About 1.5 years back, police were in my neighborhood talking to someone, I let my Aussie Cattle Dog out in my yard and I saw the police were standing in my parking spots. I immediately realized there was cops and I of course shouted, “Come back {Fido} come back!!!” the first cop says, “Oh look what kind of dog is this he’s beautiful!!” and the other cop says, “Get your dog and get him inside ” in a real stern voice…. and I say, yeah no problem he just didn’t know why people were in his yard (which they in fact were standing on )… he puts his hands on his gun, stares at the dog, and repeats verbatim in a very threatening tone, “GET YOUR DOG AND GET HIM INSIDE, *NOW* ” and to be honest, if I wasn’t so scared he would just cap “Fido” for no reason, I would have flipped out but the problem is, you ALWAYS lose the battle vs the police. It’s their training. You MAY win the war, years down the road, in court, after countless hours and years and dollars, or you may lose. But they make sure they win the battle.

    And unfortunately most states have a blanket law saying, Police operating under their official duties carry blanket immunity unless their actions are specifically felonious. Shooting dogs on duty result in like 95%+ no problems for them. AND the courts have ruled, they are not valuable for emotions and such, only replacement costs. My dog is PRICELESS TO ME, I would not sell him for a billion dollars- Some might not understand that but it’s simply the truth- I could not replace him with all the money in the world. But if a cop shot him, all I can sue for is the cost of another. It was recently re-affirmed in the courts a year or two back. Ridiculous.

    Ain’t gonna change until it changes.

  57. Legitimate dog threats are actually what O.C. spray (a.k.a. pepper spray) is actually for. And that’s about all it’s good for. No need to use deadly force if you’re not actually under attack by a vicious dog.

    • Given that sufficient quantity of pepper spray is a reliable deterrent of grizzly bears, I would find it very surprising if even the most vicious dog wouldn’t retreat in face of that. I suppose it would be possible if one was specifically trained.

      • Yep.

        Given that a dog’s nose is 10,000 times more sensitive than a human being’s nose, it’s a sure bet to be effective.

        But it’s just not as much fun as offing the dog with a bullet.

  58. I’m sick to death of hearing these stories. So many basic rights violated and no one is held to account. It probably started with some cop somewhere killing a dog that made him “uncomfy”. He got away with it, so another cop shot a dog that he found upsetting. Now it’s a matter of course that a cop can shoot a dog for any reason, any time, any place and face no consequences. Before long SWAT teams will have suppressed .22’s just for killing dogs they deem inconvenient.

  59. Honestly, I think if cops showed up at my place, acknowledged they were wrong, then started shooting my family…

    I think I’d take as many of the bastards with me as I could.

  60. One of the reasons prosecutors and judges don’t come down on cops is the cops know way too much about prosecutors and judges little games, girlfriends, boyfriends, drugs, and crooked deals.

    It’s a closed loop. . Cops, prosecutors and judges. Kinda like colleges and rape . . . .last thing a college wants to discuss is # of rapes, etc.

    Be afraid of the police for they will kill you. Ask the little boy who got the stun grenade in the crib. No charges against that idiot cop or his supervisors.

    In Charlotte, a black guy was in an accident, banged on a lady’s door for help, she legitimately thought he was a burglar. Cops respond, the guy is disoriented and runs towards the cops. He has no weapon. The cop kills him (and only fired 17 shots to do it. The cop was a tactical trainer).

  61. parity compensation, is the only remedy: ANY dog owned by SWAT morons involved, too should be euthanized.

    Any cost associated with the said canine euthanasia, should be paid by the operator wannabe SWAT themselves.

    Plus, should they resort to using any firearm to euthanize, personal or dept-issued, whether suppressed or not, like any citizen who live in areas where discharging of weapons other than for self-defense is a felony, the same should apply too: they should be put under observation.

    xD

    Or hell, maybe the SWAT team from cross county should flashbang, and be imperious and say they won’t pay for any damages or injuries incurred to the said canine, just like the same situation that parents of Bo Bo, the innocent child who had a flashbang thrown in, and the govt terrorist fucks are refusing to pay for any medical costs associated with felony assault they dealt the child and homeowner.

    Rules for thee, None for weeeeeeeee!! Yay!

    • >> ANY dog owned by SWAT morons involved, too should be euthanized.

      The dogs should not be responsible for the crimes of their owners.

  62. Wonder if the jackass cut a notch in his gun to mark the event. Good thing I don’t work in the same place. He would find a dog collar hung on his locker every week till he quit to go someplace else. If I were that woman I would start a campaign to send dog collars to the mayor and the chief of police a few hundred collars to let them know that the politicians who don’t control their cops are gonna pay at the ballot box.

  63. This is an issue that can only be remedied by LE Administrators implementing an extremely restrictive anti dog shooting policy that specifies deadly force shall only be used as the last resort in a dog ATTACK by a dog capable of causing death or serious bodily injury, that the slightest deviation from that policy will result in termination, and that lying to justify shooting a dog will result in criminal prosecution.

    As someone who calls out police haters and defends LE on most issues, I know from experience during a 30yr+ LE career that most dog shootings occur because some squirrel has an irrational fear of dogs or derives some type of weird gratification by shooting a dog. A minority of cowards and disturbed idiots in LE are responsible for the majority of dog shooting incidents and are unfit to carry a badge and a gun..

    • How do you define a “police hater?”

      What constitutes defending police “on most issues?” What issues, what situations and which police do you mean?

      How many dog shootings have you heard about in your 30 years in policing?

      What action did you take when you heard about these “squirrels” (i.e. police officers) shooting dogs?

      How many times did you call out police officers for misbehavior?

      Did you shame and ostracize them for their cowardly actions?

      How many cases did you escalate up the chain of command?

        • Your response suggests that there’s something you don’t want to discuss.

          What was illegitimate about my questions?

          In your original comment, you appeared to be claiming some high ground by disparaging officers who shoot dogs, but you didn’t state what specific actions you took to be a “good cop” when you became aware of those situations.

          As has been discussed on this post and many others, those of us who don’t work as police officers hear generalized remarks about how there are many, many good cops. And that those good cops wouldn’t close ranks around bad cops.

          But those sweeping generalizations don’t mean much without examples.

          So, I’m just asking for anecdotes of times when you stood up as a “good cop” to call out cops behaving badly.

          After 30 years, I imagine you’d have a few anecdotes.

  65. Jack booted thugs are NOT your friends! They are on the same level as child molesters and muslims.

  66. I know others have commented in this very manner but I needs to get in my 2 cents…does this mean we can shoot a K9 with impunity? The officer needs to be charges with several things.

  67. I’ve long dreamed of starting an organization with untold sums of money at its disposal to give a little power to the powerless and punish those who have traditionally been able to operate with impunity. I call it the F*ck You Foundation.

    Think of it this way: If police get the wrong address address during a swat raid, murder my pets for shits and giggles, melt off my toddler’s face with a flashbang, and do major property damage, no one involved in such incompetence is going to suffer any real repercussions and the government that employs such teams of shock troops is likely not going to have to pay a dime. Why? Because I have no money aka. power.

    Now, if the above happens to me and I happen to have several million dollars at my disposal, I can make everyone pay dearly without ever going outside the law. I could hire teams of the most shark-lawyers known to mankind, I can launch brutal and scathing PR campaigns against police departments, governments, and individual officers. Basically, with enough money, I can make the lives of everyone involved a living hell until I get retribution. Money is a more powerful weapon than all the world’s nuclear missiles combined.

    So, if I ever hit the lottery in a big way, you can rest assured that I’ll be starting up my foundation, rooted in spite and malevolence and devoted to dismantling the power structures that abuse good, every day people. Hey, a guy can dream . . .

  68. Sigh*** These are the cops who will NEVER be members of CSPOA. When the revolution comes as I am all but certain now that it will, these will be the very kinds of cops some of us will have to lose our lives over as we will have to kill those bad cops when we take our liberty back as they will be on the side of tyranny.

    I’d do almost anything to avoid that day, but it’s being foisted upon us. I am not happy at all about that. If the electorate had ever woken up, we wouldn’t be at this point but I can see now that the ballot box has failed and one day, when enough come to that conclusion and if its not too late, some will resort to the cartridge box. Hopefully it won’t be too late as it already is for the ballot box.

    SamAdams1776 III Oath keeper
    Molon Labe
    No Fort Sumters
    Qui tacet consentit
    Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
    Corruptissima re publica plurimae leges.
    Idque apud imperitos humanitas vocabatur, cum pars servitutis esset.

  69. Surely the dog shootings are a tiny minority of law enforcement, yet still, no consequences for the types that shoot friendly pets? Not even if they are at the wrong house? What a direct affront to the ‘Pursuit of Happiness.’ How can law enforcement stop the ebb of respect if laws leave pet killers unaccountable?

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