Originally published July 14 2014
U.S. cops shoot a family dog every 98 minutes; why so much violence?
by PF Louis
(NaturalNews) Incidences of police shooting dogs that aren't a threat is on the rise. It's called "puppycide." All too often, family dogs are killed on the premises of homes where their non-violent and non-criminal human owners live. As the numbers of dogs of all types are killed with or without very little provocation, the police circle their wagons and explain that procedures were followed properly, or they don't respond to queries at all.
There are exceptions where a cop shooting a dog could be exonerated. One such episode was highly publicized with videos that went viral when Leon Rosby's large Rottweiler was shot and killed. The whole thing could have been prevented had Leon not brought his dog to an area of police activity while he openly taunted them for several minutes.
Instead of taking the dog home, Leon left the dog unattended in his car with the window open enough for the dog to squirm out and heroically rush to Leon's defense as he was being handcuffed. The cop who shot Leon's dog tried at first to let the dog sniff the back of his hand, then reached for the leash to contain it. Instead, the dog lunged at the police officer, who shot the dog once.
When the dog recoiled and lunged toward the cop again, he fired three more shots into the dog, killing it. Sure, it could have been handled better. But taunting police for ideological purposes is foolish. They tend to not be so tolerant. So this is a rare episode that makes shooting a dog the owner's fault in this author's opinion. [1]
But most accounts involve situations that your grandmother could handle without violence, or are actually so non-threatening that the shootings could be considered sadistic slayings, thrill killings or target practice on live creatures running away.
The drug war's collateral damage
Sometimes, it's easy to get a little overzealous, nervous, paranoid, and panic, using a firearm hastily. But what about a German shepherd chained in a garage, or a dog already captured by animal control in an open garage? Some are shot multiple times while helpless from being tasered. [2]
Or an under-20-pound dog running away from his masters' car after they were pulled over falsely. A shotgun at close range was used on it. And what about a 5-pound Chihuahua mix cornered on its own open front porch and shot with three 9mm hollow points?
Overly militarized raids based on faulty tips or even raids on the wrong addresses occur with SWAT teams crashing through doors at early morning hours with guns drawn or even blazing.
And they're not relegated to trashy, crime-ridden neighborhoods. Even a small Maryland town mayor's home was "raided" in this manner. Both of his black Labrador retrievers were shot multiple times and killed. [2]
That mayor's wife was the victim of a smuggling scheme using innocent homes as recipients to allegedly enable a FedEx deliverer to snatch drugs before they were delivered. Instead of investigating thoroughly upon notice of the package before it was even sent, the elite cops of that county were itching to have their raid, enabling them to shoot and kill two family dogs with impunity. [3]
The estimate of a family dog shot by law enforcement every 98 minutes was derived by anti-puppycide activists' averages from tallying news items and clips reporting family dog shooting incidents.
A couple of dog-owning filmmakers decided to create a documentary on puppycide, but they had to fold their tent when their "Kickstarter" fundraiser failed to meet its target. [4] But their first trailer is still available for viewing here.
Creating a bogus drug war, militarizing police and taking guns away from law-abiding citizens is a road to Hell paved with ostensibly "good intentions."
Sources for this article include:
[1] http://www.huffingtonpost.com
[2] http://www.citylab.com
[3] http://www.washingtonpost.com
[4] https://ww.kickstarter.com
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