Posted on 08/26/2008 5:43:18 AM PDT by engrpat
A North Texas family is mourning the loss of two of their pets. The nine-month-old pit bulls were shot and killed by a neighbor who says it was self defense.
The shooting happened in a neighborhood off Ten Mile Bridge Road in northwest Fort Worth.
The neighbors never had any problems before. But that all changed over the weekend.
The man who pulled the trigger says he didn't have any choice. But the dogs' owners disagree.
Kristopher Harrison has a six-year-old daughter. He says that's why he was upset when two pit bulls wandered into his backyard Saturday afternoon.
Harrison says he told his next door neighbors, if it happened again, he would shoot the dogs. And that's exactly what he did around 4 a.m. Sunday morning.
Harrison says he and a friend were taking a break from watching the Olympics when the nine-month-old dog named 'Scarface' crawled under the fence. Harrison had his shotgun with him, so he says he shot the dog and the dog's sister, 'Lady'.
"I wish he just would have went in the house and would have came and told me instead of retaliating that way," dog owner Shaylen Ross said.
One of the animals was found dead in Harrison's backyard. The other was found dead in its own backyard.
"He was showing his teeth, growling and he was coming at me," Harrison explained. "The second dog, I didn't know. I didn't think I was going to have to shoot him, because he seemed a little hesitant. But then he looked at the hole in the fence. I thought he was going to go back under, then he turned around and started coming at me and that's when I shot him."
Fort Worth Police are reviewing the case, but they say if the dogs were in the neighbor's yard when they were shot it's unlikely that any charges will be filed.
You seem to think that the second dog was killed in its owner's back yard. It's more likely that both were shot in "Wyatt Earp"'s yard, then one managed to wriggle back under the fence before assuming room temperature.
Hearing gunfire on your neighbor's property is NOT sufficient cause to start shooting at people. It would not be self-defense, and would be considered negligent homicide at the very least.
Of course the owners bear some responsibility. So that justifies killing the animals? Bull! The dude was out to get the animals. I bear some responsibility when my kid hits a baseball through your window. You gonna kill him, too? Baseballs can cause serious injury!!
About 20 years ago I bought a house not knowing my neighbors were gang members. The fence was falling apart and they had a pit bull. One evening this pit bull slammed into my sliding glass door trying to get at me and my family. Wow! What an eye opener for the mentality of those dogs. Called the neighbor to come get their dog. Then built a block wall 7 ft high. And yes they had little kids. I can’t imagine what that dog would have done to my kid.
I'm sorry. I didn't realize you kept your children out in the barn with the livestock. By all means, fire when ready.
I think the neighbor should have gotten his fence fixed after the first warning.
LOL! No, I don't. I did one time in Austin, but not where I am now.
Given his previous threat(s), I find it more likely that he shot the second dog in its yard and then lied than I do that the wounded animal crawled back under the fence.
The fact is none of us know what really transpired. And I think the guy telling the story is full of it.
His daughter won’t be getting mauled or killed by those dogs. People have an obligation to control their animals and this owner had already been warned.
Occasionally on the farm we would get dogs who would pack up and chase the cattle (that kills them in the summer). We didn’t try to find the owners we just shot them, because we knew that they would be back and chances weren’t good that we’d be there the next time. When the dogs were not in the process of killing livestock, and you knew where the dog belonged, the response was always, “Not my dog. Couldn’t have been my dog. He’s been chained up all night.”
How many opportunities do think should have been provided for these Pit Bulls to mingle with his daughter? Should a man have to watch over his children with a gun in his own backyard?
I love animals, too - even the occasional roaming dog or cat that wanders to my house. However, if it's gonna bark and growl at me and it presumes I'm gonna let it bite me, I'm taking it that the animal doesn't wish to make new friends and I will respond appropriately.
I have owned, trained and raised dogs before, but will not have another one....and i cannot stand them anymore, not because of the dogs themselves, but because of the irresponsibe stupidity of the vast mojority of dog owners..it truly is a shame, but most dog owners should not be allowed to keep a dog..
An opinion undoubtedly held by the shooter.
Military qualifications are absolutely the lowest level of training that I’d be willing to accept.
You get a far better education from private trainers and specialized agencies. Blackwater runs a hell of a range, as do Gunsite and some others.
You’d get nowhere with the judge and jury for the killing of your dog that was in your neighbor’s yard, and I approve killing that one. However, I see where you would have a case if your neighbor fires a gun into your yard for whatever reason.
I was also told that line when a neighbor's roamer came and attacked my chained dog in my yard and I called him about it.
The next night, I didn't kill the dog - it made it back home, but it was either the owner put the animal down or he would have to provide it a prosthetic hip.
Of course the owners bear some responsibility...............................................................................No, the owner bears all the responsibility
Where else should he have his shotgun but at home with him?
It’s a bad neighbor who buys two pit bulls when he knows there is a family with a six year old living next door. Little Scarface did not belong there.
My neighbors have pit bulls. They keep finding a gap in the fence and come into my yard to crap.
That's not why pit bulls have a "bad rap." They have a bad rap because the breed has earned it with their killings and maulings across the country. A pit bull that suddenly goes into attack mode is a killer, unlike chihuahuas.
I disagree. A pound of hamburger laced with ground glass and tossed over the fence would've been evidence that Wyatt was "out to get" those dogs. I'm certain that his back yard has sufficient evidence to either support his story or call it into legal question.
I bear some responsibility when my kid hits a baseball through your window. You gonna kill him, too? Baseballs can cause serious injury!!
Yeah, you're right... every few months there's a story on the news about how a baseball ripped the throat out of a toddler.
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