Essex dog shooting going to court

Essex police officer Mr. Wooten will be headed to court in November for shooting and killing a neighbor's dog. His own dog had gotten loose and fought with the neighbor's dog on his property. The officer broke up the fight and took his dog home. He later returned and, approximately ten feet from a 2-yr-old child, discharged his weapon, killing the dog. The dog had never left his property.

Even though there is no question regarding the circumstances of the shooting (the dog was on his property, the officer walked on the property to shoot the dog even though the threat had passed), Officer Wooten has not faced any disciplinary actions nor is he facing any significant charges - at most, he may face $2,000 in fines and up to a year in prison.

The dog was a Labrador Retriever mix.

Essex county officer pleads no guilty to killing dog

For previous entries on the Essex case.

Off-duty officer Michael Wootten has plead not guilty to charges of animal cruelty after he shot and killed a non-aggressive dog on the dog's own property, mere feet from a young child.

Amazingly (appallingly?) this man has not been placed on paid leave even though he has been charged with a crime.

The reality is that nothing is in question: There is no question that Officer Wootten took a loaded weapon onto another person's property and discharged that weapon within close proximity to a young child. There is also no question that the threat had passed - Wootten's dog is the one who was loose and off-leash, Wootten's dog is the one who initiatied contact with the now-dead dog on the now-dead dog's property. Wootten, after retrieving his errant dog should have done nothing more than taken his dog to a vet. He was, after all, at fault for allowing his dog to run loose.

But he didn't. He grabbed his weapon, walked back over to the property and shot the other dog dead.

That is not the type of behavior I want to see in police officers.

Update on Essex dog shooting

Earlier this month, an off-duty Essex police officer took it upon himself to shoot and kill a dog who had gotten into a fight on its own property with the officer's loose dog. The dog was killed on his own property within 10 feet of a 2-yr-old child. The dog was not killed during the fight but after when the officer took his dog back home, retrieved a gun and returned.

The update is that the officer is facing a measly citation for killing this dog. He is not facing any criminal charges for recklessly endangering the life of that 2-yr-old child. I don't think he's facing significant penalties for the animal cruelty charge - a citation is hardly punishment.

Off duty cop accused of killing dog

Whoa, here's a messed up story out of Waterville, Vermont.

A dog belonging to an off-duty police officer was running loose. He entered the backyard of a neighbor and engaged in a fight with the neighbor's dog. The neighbor's dog was on his own property. After the police officer broke up the fight, he took his dog back home, grabbed his gun, walked back to the neighbor's yard and shot the dog once, killing him. And, it gets better, he shot this dog literally feet from a 2-yr-old child.

It will be interesting to see if any charges stem from this shooting. There is something very wrong with a person who refuses to take personal responsibility for confining his dog and expresses his anger through the use of a lethal weapon. I mean, that goes without saying, right?