libertyjam
06-05-2012, 09:15 AM
DOJ-published report on cop vs. dog shootings, w/ recommendations for reducing incidence.
http://cops.usdoj.gov/RIC/ResourceDetail.aspx?RID=612
In fact, dogs are seldom dangerous. According to Janis Bradley, author
of “Dogs Bite, but Balloons and Slippers Are More Dangerous,” more
people are killed by lightning each year than by dogs. Despite the
increase in the number of dogs and people in the United States, dogbite-
related fatalities are exceedingly rare and have not increased over
the last two decades: 25 were reported in 1990 as compared to 24 in
2008. Although the number of fatalities fluctuates, it remains low from
year to year.4
There is no scientific evidence that one kind of dog is more likely to
bite or injure a human being than another kind of dog. The American
Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Task Force on Canine Aggression
and Human-Canine Interaction has strongly cautioned against using
statistics to target particular breeds as more likely to bite: “Dog bite
statistics are not really statistics, and they do not give an accurate
picture of dogs that bite.”5
There is no documented case of a police or peace officer
dying as the result of a dog-bite-related injury
Frequency of Dog Shootings by Police Officers
In most police departments, the majority of shooting incidents involve animals,
most frequently dogs. For example, nearly three-fourths of the shooting incidents
in Milwaukee from January 2000–September 2002 involved shots fired at dogs,
with 44 dogs killed by officers during that period.6 Information furnished by
various California law enforcement agencies indicated that at least one-half of all
intentional discharges of a firearm by an officer from 2000–2005 involved animals.7
It is in the interests of every department to reduce such occurrences. Departments
should review firearm-discharge reports to determine the frequency of the incidents
and the circumstances involved, and then take steps to reduce the number of
incidents.
In 1998, officers from the
San Jose (California) Police Department
raided two homes owned by Hell’s Angels
motorcycle-club members and killed three
dogs. The city paid the motorcycle club
nearly $1 million as a result. Two other
departments—Santa Clara and Gilroy—
also paid for their involvement in the event.
The grand total in damages reached nearly
$1.8 million. City appeals were struck
down by the courts, which cited Fourth
Amendment violations, a failure to consider
an alternative for “isolating” the dogs in the
week-long planning of the raid, and a failure
to use less lethal weapons. (Source: Lisa
Spahr, “The Canine Factor: To Shoot or Not
to Shoot,” Subject to Debate, a publication
of the Police Executive Research Forum,
January 2007.)
The killing or injuring of a dog also opens
the officer and the department to lawsuits
and other legal actions, including 42
USC 1983 claims (deprivation of property
without due process) and internal-affairs
investigations. For example, in 2002, a
Chicago woman whose dog was fatally
shot when it lunged at a Chicago police
officer was awarded $120,000.10
When an officer kills or injures a dog that is not a serious threat, other
significant harms can result. Such incidents often do serious damage to
community trust in the department and profession. Controversy particularly
arises when an officer’s assessment of “imminent danger” is challenged by
witnesses, the dog’s owner, or a video record of the incident.
http://cops.usdoj.gov/RIC/ResourceDetail.aspx?RID=612
In fact, dogs are seldom dangerous. According to Janis Bradley, author
of “Dogs Bite, but Balloons and Slippers Are More Dangerous,” more
people are killed by lightning each year than by dogs. Despite the
increase in the number of dogs and people in the United States, dogbite-
related fatalities are exceedingly rare and have not increased over
the last two decades: 25 were reported in 1990 as compared to 24 in
2008. Although the number of fatalities fluctuates, it remains low from
year to year.4
There is no scientific evidence that one kind of dog is more likely to
bite or injure a human being than another kind of dog. The American
Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Task Force on Canine Aggression
and Human-Canine Interaction has strongly cautioned against using
statistics to target particular breeds as more likely to bite: “Dog bite
statistics are not really statistics, and they do not give an accurate
picture of dogs that bite.”5
There is no documented case of a police or peace officer
dying as the result of a dog-bite-related injury
Frequency of Dog Shootings by Police Officers
In most police departments, the majority of shooting incidents involve animals,
most frequently dogs. For example, nearly three-fourths of the shooting incidents
in Milwaukee from January 2000–September 2002 involved shots fired at dogs,
with 44 dogs killed by officers during that period.6 Information furnished by
various California law enforcement agencies indicated that at least one-half of all
intentional discharges of a firearm by an officer from 2000–2005 involved animals.7
It is in the interests of every department to reduce such occurrences. Departments
should review firearm-discharge reports to determine the frequency of the incidents
and the circumstances involved, and then take steps to reduce the number of
incidents.
In 1998, officers from the
San Jose (California) Police Department
raided two homes owned by Hell’s Angels
motorcycle-club members and killed three
dogs. The city paid the motorcycle club
nearly $1 million as a result. Two other
departments—Santa Clara and Gilroy—
also paid for their involvement in the event.
The grand total in damages reached nearly
$1.8 million. City appeals were struck
down by the courts, which cited Fourth
Amendment violations, a failure to consider
an alternative for “isolating” the dogs in the
week-long planning of the raid, and a failure
to use less lethal weapons. (Source: Lisa
Spahr, “The Canine Factor: To Shoot or Not
to Shoot,” Subject to Debate, a publication
of the Police Executive Research Forum,
January 2007.)
The killing or injuring of a dog also opens
the officer and the department to lawsuits
and other legal actions, including 42
USC 1983 claims (deprivation of property
without due process) and internal-affairs
investigations. For example, in 2002, a
Chicago woman whose dog was fatally
shot when it lunged at a Chicago police
officer was awarded $120,000.10
When an officer kills or injures a dog that is not a serious threat, other
significant harms can result. Such incidents often do serious damage to
community trust in the department and profession. Controversy particularly
arises when an officer’s assessment of “imminent danger” is challenged by
witnesses, the dog’s owner, or a video record of the incident.