SC - Family calls 911 for non emergency help, cop arrives, shoots family dog dead.

[Anti Federalist]

Family calls 911 for non emergency help with a neighbor's wandering dog, cop shows up, refuses to listen to Mundane's instructions to wait until their dogs are put away, gets out of car, shoots family dog dead.


Fatal shooting of dog by deputy investigated

By Schuyler Kropf , David MacDougall
skropf@postandcourier.com macdougd@postandcourier.com
Thursday, June 2, 2011

http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2011/jun/02/fatal-shooting-of-dog-by-deputy-investigated/

http://postandcourier.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/photos/2011/06/01/dogkilled2_t180.jpg?370a03faaa4bde2115f371a02430eb 3e6a451be5

JOHNS ISLAND -- Authorities are trying to unravel the case of a Charleston County sheriff's deputy who was called to assist a family last week, but ended up fatally shooting its dog.

"I lost my four-legged son," said E.L. Holst of Sonny Boy Lane, whose 5-year-old German shepherd, Jake, was killed by a single shot after the deputy reported that the animal lunged at him.

"We called them because we didn't want to lose an animal and it turned into a catastrophe," Holst said.

Family members contend that Jake was shot when he wasn't a threat, but was hunkered down holding his ground 10 feet away.

The deputy reported that the dog, which weighed more than 80 pounds, was only two feet away from him, snarling, barking and about to strike.

"At approximately two feet, I had no choice but to discharge my service weapon to protect myself from being bitten by the K-9," Deputy Michael Buenting wrote in his incident report. "The K-9 received one wound to the top of the head and immediately fell to the ground."

A Sheriff's Office spokesman said all signs point to the deputy following proper protocol, firing in response to danger and when an attack became imminent.

"We didn't see where he did anything wrong," said sheriff's Maj. John Clark, who added that the investigation is ongoing and will include an internal-affairs examination of the shooting site.

[thehungarian]

I know it's probably "protocol" or some bullshit, but I would let myself be bit by a dog before I'd shoot it. Maybe not a pitbull, but Christ almighty, there are ways to defend yourself from a god damn DOG before shooting it in the face.

[Kylie]

Man, everydamned day.

[Anti Federalist]

Maj. John Clark

Majors now?

[Anti Federalist]

Some of the comments are pretty sickening.


coldbeer
3:10 PM on 6/2/2011

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I'm amazed at some of the ignorant posts on here. Sure there are bad cops.. just as there are bad moms, bad dads, bad soldiers, bad teachers, bad kids, bad preachers... there are always some bad apples in ANY group of people. MOST cops, however, are highly professional and frequently place their lives on the line making sure all of us are safe. To assume that most are bad, trigger happy, poorly trained bullies is assinine and shows the ignorance of the posters. In this particular case, based on the facts as they are presented in the aricle, shooting the dog was justified. The owner called for the police to come to the house and then the owner did not take the necessary precautions to ensure the dog would not be a threat to the police.


scborn54
12:20 PM on 6/2/2011

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Early is right. Hope those of you 'cop bashers' never need one of them.. they put their lives on the line every day.


grouper
11:53 AM on 6/2/2011

Good job deputy Buenting!
You made the right call.
I'm sure you feel as bad as the owners do.
When the emotion of the situation recedes the "second guessers" will understand.
Keep up the good work.

[heavenlyboy34]

Some of the comments are pretty sickening.
It is disheartening to see the booboisie think like this...and I know plenty of them myself :(

[Anti Federalist]

It is disheartening to see the booboisie think like this...and I know plenty of them myself :(

I'm getting heat in another thread from a member who seems to think I'm too negative about these stories.

I'd hate to see another person lose a pet or loved one because they called for "help" from the state's enforcers.

[Dr.3D]

Making mental note to self, do not show teeth and growl while looking at a cop.

[Danke]

As long as my pet fish Eric is safe, the cops deserve my praise. The queen herself bestowed me a license.

[Anti Federalist]

As long as my pet fish Eric is safe, the cops deserve my praise. The queen herself bestowed me a license.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3428/3982876506_8b8903aa87.jpg

[Danke]

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3428/3982876506_8b8903aa87.jpg

Now he is going after my pet fish Eric! Mods! Keep us safe!

[Pericles]

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Jake, this one is for you;

http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt317/Pericles-photo/A4const.jpg

[BamaAla]

Its starting to get closer to home; my better half has a vacation home just down the road from Johns Island. These stories always seem to be in a far away area, but some of your recent posts have been closing in on me.

[Kylie]

Its starting to get closer to home; my better half has a vacation home just down the road from Johns Island. These stories always seem to be in a far away area, but some of your recent posts have been closing in on me.


Dude, don't mean to be a Debbie Downer, but they're closing in on all of us.

Whatcha gonna do?

[iGGz]

Vet Findings Conflict with Sheriff Report in Dog Shooting Case


Vet examination suggests dog was in a defensive position when shot.

5-year-old German Shepherd Jake was shot and killed on May 25 shortly after a sheriff’s deputy responded to a call from his owner, Gretchen Holst, about a disturbance caused by a neighbor who was trespassing with dogs. When Deputy Michael Buenting arrived on the scene, a member of the Holst family was putting their own dogs away. But in his report, Buenting said Jake got free and lunged at him, forcing him to draw his weapon and fire in self defense.

Now a veterinarian who examined the German Shepherd asserts that Jake was not likely in an attack position when he was shot. According to Dr. Tom Sheridan, the trajectory suggests that the dog had its muzzle pointed downward when the bullet struck.

“Dogs don’t lunge like that,” Sheridan said yesterday. He claims the bullet wound is consistent with a dog holding its ground in a defensive manner.

Sheridan’s statement followed an x-ray of the dog that showed an entrance wound on the dog’s head above the eyes. The bullet path angled downward, toward the base of its skull.

“It doesn’t appear that the dog was lunging at the officer for the bullet to be placed like that,” he added.

Sheridan points out that he is not certified in forensic pathology and cannot estimate the distance between the dog and the shooter, but Sheriff’s Deputy Michael Buenting said the dog was about 2 feet away and charging aggressively when he fired. Gretchen Holst maintains that Jake was hunkered down at least ten feet away.

“I’m sure both sides are going to be clouded in emotion and adrenaline,” Sheridan said.
Holst family attorney Mike Gruenloh said the shooting would never have taken place if Deputy Buenting had listened to the Holsts when he arrived.

“There has been a lot of criticism of the family that they should have had the dogs put up,” Gruenloh said, “Mrs. Holst was doing just that but the officer did not give her a chance and ignored her requests to not come up the driveway and request that he stay in the car.”

Buenting remains on duty pending the results of an internal investigation that is expected to conclude by early next week.

lifewithdogs.tv/2011/06/vet-findings-conflict-with-sheriff-report-in-dog-shooting-case/

[ThePiousPriest]

Damn, I'm just 3 hours away from here. I've had one growing up and they are not stupid animals who go off without provocation.This dog's temperament wasn't the problem since kids are common place according to the report.The dog is doing that is bred to do and any prick pig should know that and work around it.Even then, it didn't justify shooting the dog. Pepper Spray would be a better non lethal alternative as a dog's nose is so much more sensitive than ours. GSD's are giving their lives to tell us " your government is out of control, let our sacrifice not be in vain, take back your control and reign in your government".

I don't care what kind of hell the lady of the house gives me, we are getting GSD's for the house and family.

[Brian4Liberty]

So if dogs bark and growl at strangers, and generally act like dogs, then they should be shot?

[AFPVet]

Pepper Spray would be a better non lethal alternative as a dog's nose is so much more sensitive than ours.


That's what I would've done if I felt that a dog was about to bite me. Pepper works great on many animals. These 'new' so called police officers only know tazers and firearms... they don't know what my law enforcement generation knows I guess.

[Nastynate]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbwSwvUaRqc

This happened not too far from me.... Just found it and I seriously almost had a tear in my eye when I heard the dog yiping after being shot. I don't know how anyone with a conscious shoot such an awesome animal.

[newbitech]

Why did this cop have his gun out to begin with? Did this cop do a quick draw in order to defend himself or was he walking up on the scene with his gun drawn? If the dog was attacking him aggressively and lunging as he tells it, "2 feet away" I find it hard to believe the cop would have had enough time to pull his gun and place the shot where he placed it.

That fucking gun should never ever come out of the holster on a call like this. Protocol? Why not just be clear and make the protocol state that anytime a cop gets out of the car he is in danger, thus REQUIRE cops to only get out of the car with their weapons drawn. At least that way, the people who call on them will know that they are calling on lethal use of force every single time.

I think that if these people would have realized they were calling on someone who operates on the protocol of shoot anything that moves, they would have maybe called the dog catcher instead.

[JohnMeridith]

That's what I would've done if I felt that a dog was about to bite me. Pepper works great on many animals. These 'new' so called police officers only know tazers and firearms... they don't know what my law enforcement generation knows I guess.

I'm definitely not condoning the cop's actions, but I don't think they all carry pepper spray. The dumb shit should have stayed in the car instead of being B.A. Cop douche and ignoring the property owner's request.

[angelatc]

The cop forums are really scary. They really reinforce my belief that cops are much different than they used to be. When I grew up, there were 2 houses I could see from my porch that belnoged to cops. We knew those guys, they were the neighbors. Their kids played with us, they wandered over to wrench on cars and shoot the breeze occasionally...

Where I live now I also have two homes that belong to cops. They are both total recluses. They never "mingle." Their kids are the same age as mine, but they don't interact with the other kids in the neighborhood. They boys play sports, but they don't even play in the hometown league.

It's like the cops these days build themselves their own little world in order to dehumanize the mundanes. If we aren't cops, then we aren't them, and therefore it is ok to brutalize us.

[Brian4Liberty]

The cop forums are really scary. They really reinforce my belief that cops are much different than they used to be. When I grew up, there were 2 houses I could see from my porch that belnoged to cops. We knew those guys, they were the neighbors. Their kids played with us, they wandered over to wrench on cars and shoot the breeze occasionally...

Where I live now I also have two homes that belong to cops. They are both total recluses. They never "mingle." Their kids are the same age as mine, but they don't interact with the other kids in the neighborhood. They boys play sports, but they don't even play in the hometown league.

It's like the cops these days build themselves their own little world in order to dehumanize the mundanes. If we aren't cops, then we aren't them, and therefore it is ok to brutalize us.

Good observation.

It also seems that most LEOs are younger than they used to be. Intentional or not, the lack of senior "mentors" can have variety of negative implications. How many brutal regimes use young people for their enforcers? An extreme example would be Cambodia...

[AFPVet]

I'm definitely not condoning the cop's actions, but I don't think they all carry pepper spray. The dumb shit should have stayed in the car instead of being B.A. Cop douche and ignoring the property owner's request.

No... you're right. In order to carry pepper or a tazer, you had to have it used against you lol. Now for me, they just told me to carry it and they would 'certify' me later since pepper was so important to have in addition to the expandable baton.