Posted on 06/27/2014 11:48:00 AM PDT by Altariel
Police spent much of Tuesday searching for a fugitive.
During the search West Virginia State Troopers and the Mason County Sheriff's Department said they had to shoot and kill a woman's dog.
Police spent almost 12 hours searching for Johnathon Jeffers, but with no luck. At one point during the search, police came out of the woods and onto Ginger Sweats’ property in Mason County. She has no ties to Jeffers, but was immediately caught up in the search when officers said they had to fire their guns.
Accompanied by the dog she has left, Sweat was still trying to come to terms with the loss of her beagle mix, Willy Pete. On Tuesday, police were searching the area where Sweat lives for a man who they said shot at them.
Sweat just happens to live in the search area, about seven miles outside of Milton. She said during the search, West Virginia State Troopers and Mason County Sheriff's Deputies came out of the woods onto her front yard, and that's when they shot her dog four times.
"The first time he tried to run. I don't think it hit him," she said. "They still continued to shoot him, and he eventually ran around to the side of my house, died and collapsed by my air conditioner."
Sweat said Willy Pete was her best friend, and that she tried to tell officers that the dog wasn't going to hurt anyone. However, West Virginia State Police Lieutenant Michael Baylous said the dog was a threat, and troopers did what they are trained to do.
"Try to avoid it, if possible, but the trooper who fired the shots, it's my understanding, waited until the very last second to fire that shot, in hopes that that animal would retreat," Baylous said.
The dog was sitting on a porch in the front of her house when the troopers came onto her property. Police said the dog started coming toward them. Sweat said the dog wasn't aggressive, but police said he was, and that they had to shoot.
"Many of us are dog lovers, but when it comes down to it, you absolutely have to put more value on the human life side of the equation than the side of the animal," Baylous said.
Troopers buried the dog behind the house. Sweat said her dog got her through a lot, and she is going to miss Willy Pete. She hopes that troopers think twice next time, before shooting an animal.
"I hit my knees when it happened, and begged the officer to do something," she said. "That was my best friend."
Not fear.
Powerlust.
Control.
Domination.
Sadism.
So long as the “fear” excuse is tossed about, the problem continues.
“absolutely have to put more value on the human life side of the equation than the side of the animal,”
Just wait until the anti-cop brigade descends and starts persecuting the cops.
Do they use menacing beagle targets in their training?
Vicious breed, the troopers, not the beagle.
Whoops, too late. They are already here.
How about the law-abiding woman whom the police *did* harm by their actions?
Seems to me you have little regard for her, since she is a non-government employee.
Dog was running away from them. And the shot it?
and ya, shoot at my dogs I am likely to shoot you.
</EXTREME sarc>
Here’s a, perhaps rhetorical, question for the police: Why is it when I was an unarmed courier for two years, encountering aggressively “barking” dogs on several occasions, that none of them initiated an attack after I paused and waited for them to settle down, but police often find the need to shoot them in similar situations? The answer can be found in the article: it’s because, according to a police superior, that is what they are trained to do; shoot, if, in their sole opinion, they feel threatened. Whether they are really threatened in objective reality matters little.
I have little interest in dogs but even I know beagles are harmless. I have been around them enough to know.
We could send each victim a dollar to fight this in court. We just need an address.
“Many of us are dog lovers, but when it comes down to it, you absolutely have to put more value on the human life side of the equation than the side of the animal,” Baylous said.
No you don’t. Not when the fuzz is trespassing on private
property without permission. Besides his statement is BS
anyway. If not then why are there all those animal cruelty
laws? These cops are like most cops, cowards.
“They would have been in fear of their lives even if it was a Teacup Chihuahua ...”
Or even a picture of one.
If he really put more value on the human life side of the equation, the life and dignity of the dog’s owner would have been a consideration and the cops would have kept their weapons in their holsters.
Mason County. I will not say more
There it is, right there in the article. They train them to shoot dogs.
“troopers did what they were trained to do”
He's a liar.
Thugs like this just don’t understand how dogs are hard wired. Any time a stranger barges onto a dog’s property, the dog will come running in his direction and bark at him. When I was a teenager, I had a Beagle who did it and now, fifty some years later, I have an 85 lb. Pitador and a 110 lb. Great Dane who do it. In each case all the stranger needs to does stop and talk to the dog and wait for the happy wiggles and wags. That’s worked for UPS drivers, Fed Ex drivers, my neighbors, and all sorts of contractors with my two dogs to the point where I can’t even credibly threaten to sick them on anybody.
A loud command to stop followed by aggressive moves toward an offending dog will usually cause it to stop, the cop being the much larger predator. If that doesn’t work, one or two warning shots into the ground in front of the average dog will send it running. Actual, lethal force is only necessary against the most vicious, lethal, and determined dogs, of which there are quite few, most of which are police and other attack trained dogs.
I’d probably send them more than a buck.
These cops have to learn to pepper spray a dog if they feel the need to shoot it.
it’s amazing I have NEVER heard of the UPS guy or Fedex guy.. or heck even the post man shooting a dog..
I bet they deal with them more often than the thugs do meaning they should have more troubles with dogs.
Come to think of it. Both Fedex and UPS drivers know how to handle my dogs.. Bring them a milkbone and they will show you to the safe.. (well not really, but you are an instant friend of theirs)
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