September 2010: Police Throw Dog Down Stairwell, Shoot Him

Two leashed dogs got into a scuffle at a festival. The larger dog, a Pit Bull Mix, became agitated and his foster guardians was having a difficult time calming him down. When police arrived, they shoved the owner away and manhandled the dog (you can see the picture with the dog under control). Instead of lassoing, catch-poling, tasering, leashing, throwing into the back of a car, the officer picked up the dog, flung him down a flight of stairs, and shot him multiple times, killing the dog. Go team, New York!

Pennsylvania officer shoots dog during fight

A dog engaged in a fight is dead after being shot by a Washintgon, PA police officer. A man was walking his own dog when a loose dog approached and both dogs began fighting. The owner of the leashed dog tried to separate the two but couldn't so his wife called police.

The police officer tasered the dog twice, which didn't stop the dog, so he shot the dog in the head, killing him.

DC police shoot dog, bullet ricochets, hits child in head

In DC, a family's dog got out of the house in view of the family. The family's son, a 12-yr-old, immediately ran after the dog to catch him. Unfortunately, he was also toting around a plastic toy gun that looked a lot like a real gun.

Someone called police who arrived, ordering the child to the ground. At some point, the dog must have seen what was going on and approached the officer. As usual in these cases, there are two disparaging reports. Police claim the dog charged the officer, while a neighbor who witnessed the arrest said the dog did not but simply crouched. Police claim a bullet did not ricochet and hit the child in the head, the child's family claim one did (and he went to the hospital, so I imagine there was a reason for that).