Cops sued over dog shooting.............

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I believe we should wait for the results of the investigation into this affair. It is tragic that the officers involved did not just close the doors to the car. Honestly, I don't know if I would have shot or not if I were in that situation. In hindsight I would not have. The officer had no such chance to see in hindsight. It is a tragic blunder for all involved.

I believe that the Smoaks will win a very large monetary settlement and law enforcement will take a black eye. Any way you look at it there are no winners.

New Leaf, I think you will find some very strong opinions here. Please do not take any discussion personally. It is, to the best of my knowledge and experience, very unlikely that anyone here has a personal animus against you.

That is my .02 cents worth.
 
new leaf...

Ridiculous or not. I certainly don't feel a human life is due over this and I don't think money is the answer. This could be treated like a class action against every unexcusable police action and award them millions. I find that wrong. Does nothing to make officers more respectful of human rights. If it only caused them dirty knees and humiliation, a few hundred thou would probably make them smile. They were handed a plateful of grief by the irresponsible acts of those officers. Didn't respect their requests to close door. Nancied out and blasted a little dog. What act of contrition would you find adequate? Give it a little deeper thought. This would impact law enforcement everywhere. Would you suit up and serve a warrant with someone who carried that badge of shame? Give me an alternative that would actually be meaningful to reverse the low esteem SOME law enforcement holds for those they serve.
 
newleaf

Everyone's entitled to an opinion. Doesn't mean we have to agree with it.

I am a friend to LEOs in my area. They are not jack-booted thugs. They are friends. Everyone of them that has seen that video say one thing--that was a MAJOR SCREW UP. That officer shouldn't be a mall security guard. He's a major malfunction.

The video speaks for itself. The police were warned about the open door, the dog was a bull dog that would have needed to be lifted to bite the officer on the neck, and it was wagging its tail and was non-aggressive right up to the minute it got plugged.

I'm not a dog person, but all living animals deserve better than what that bulldog got. That officer is sick. He needs to be fired, fined, and the entire THP sued for that miscarriage of justice.

That's my opinion, and I'm entitled to it just as you are to yours.

Sincerely,

OKC
 
"its only a dog"

Its only a dog unless its yours.

The cops screwed up and their employer should have to pay.

Whats the answer? When you have a limited number of
people to hire from and you need X amout of officers on the
street. Your budget only allows an average wage at best and only so much training.

Its hard to fire someone if their Union goes to bat for them. Or you dont fire them because you have to have X amount of warm bodys in uniform and the next in line is less qualified than what you have. Or your racial mix will be off.

Everyone has had bad service at (fill in the blank).
When you throw in a badge it just makes it a 1000 times worse.
It may seem like a lot of LEO's are out of control or on a power trip. Percentage wise I bet the screw ups are pretty low compare
to doing it the right way.
So, Whats the answer?





"Who is John Galt"
 
The cops involved with this were in the wrong.

I am not sure that a big payoff to the family is the right solution though. Taxpayers end up paying the bill, and lawyers take half.

I think a better punishment would be for the cops to be fired, and then lined up on primetime, and individually jack-slapped on national television by each member of the Smoak family.
 
How can one particular dog be considered a police officer on one hand (ie have value), but in another setting that same dog would be simply considered property on the other? Is it because the family dog is owned by a commoner, while the K-9 is owned by the "elite?" Again, the question stands. How can you be comfortable with one circumstance and condemn the other?

Seems to me there's quite a bit of disconnect here. I think it goes a long way in explaining new leaf's perspective.

Goalie
 
It's not about the dog, it's about a lack of common sense and the violation of the Smoak's civil rights. It would have been very easy for the police in this matter to simply verify that the occupants of the car were the Smoaks, instead of felons. A few simple questions asked by the police would have cleared the whole thing up. Rather than do that, the cops decided to play Rambo.

Say what you will, but this is the paragon of crummy police work.
 
Why do you keep referring to general Patton as "just a dog" -- because he isn't yours or because he wasn't human? Both? We know he wasn't human, but that didn't make him unworthy. I take it you never had a dog when you were a kid. Otherwise maybe you'd feel a little compassion and stop with the "just a dog" schpiel. The dog's death could have been prevented were it not for a number of LE errors that led to his death.

Those other errors are what haven't been adequately addressed. How did the BOLO turn into a felony stop? Who made that decision? Why was the 911 call taken at face value without corroberation? Why wasn't more common sense exhibited by the THP at the scene? Why didn't they close the door after clearing the car?
 
New leaf, I do get the impression that because this doesn't personally and directly affect you, it means very little.

A family's civil rights were violated because some cops were either too stupid or lazy to verify what was actually going on. The behavior of the police in this matter, to me, is serious cause for alarm.
 
Turn a K-9 loose on an innocent civilian who hasn't done anything wrong and see how far that goes when you take him to court for rightfully defending his life by killing the (just a) dog.
 
ojibweindian,

You are correct.

It doesnt so much matter that a dog was shot. The police destroyed private property for no reason. The fact that it was a dog makes it play better on the news, and makes it more shocking.
 
Lone_gunman

You are exactly right. But there is more to it than the issue of private property. What really bugs me is the callous, violent behavior of police officers towards innocent people. This incident, and the one in Detroit, quite possibly portends the future relationship between law enforcement and the citizenry.
 
new leaf

And you know nothing about me either. It's rather easy for you to sit back and call this an "unfortunate incident". However, you weren't affected by it. Your wife and son were not placed in handcuffs and treated like felons because you left your wallet on the roof of a car.

But hey, no big deal, it wasn't your family, so that makes it okay.
 
ojibweindian,

Maybe you should give new leaf a break; he seems to be the kind of guy who really wouldnt mind having the civil rights of his family violated, while watching his dog's brains splatter all over the side of the family station wagon.
 
Actually, rather than anti-government, I've always been part of the government and that's why I feel it necessary to make the point that the actions in Tennessee are unacceptable. I vote for a higher standard. It really isn't about the dog at all. It's the actions that culminated in the dogs death followed by the callous "just a dog" comments. It wasn't just a dog, it was the final chapter in a book on how to screw up.
 
new_leaf.

Can you not put yourself into the shoes of Mr. Smoak? Would you be so ready to condone the actions of the police if this happened to you? You seem just as bad as you say I am in the blind acceptance that the police acted appropriately.

And what is wrong with questioning the acts of our government. As Bruce Springsteen said, blind faith in your leaders can get you killed.
 
Well, if my government makes a habit of shackling innocent people on the uncorroborated say-so of an anonymous 911 caller, while its apologists not only insist nothing is wrong with it but demean those who have honest opinions to the contrary, then where do I sign up to become an anti-government zealot?

I'm not anti-government. I'm anti-BAD-government. And nothing I saw on that video escapes the "bad" clause.

Goalie
 
When you get pulled over by the police, keep control of your dog.
Click to expand...
I don't want to seem rude, but which of the facts are you willing to jettison to make your point?

How, exactly, would you expect the family, victims of an unwarranted "felony stop", to do more than they did while on their knees and handcuffed?

The tape clearly reveals their repeated requests to the officers on scene to CLOSE THE DOOR of their car so that the dog would not be allowed to EXIT THE VEHICLE and be subject to the dangers of the situation. I, like them, wouldn't want my dog to be wandering around a major interstate, much less be slaughtered by a panicked local LEO who HAD NO BUSINESS ON THE SCENE!

In spite of their compliance, the Smoak's pleas were ignored...the dog exited the vehicle [after remaining patiently in the car for a commendable period of time] and was shot dead by someone who turned a terrible mistake into a tragedy.

What, exactly, do you not understand/accept about the facts?
 
As a non-LEO, I saw the video (online) and the shoot looks good.

I question the reason for the stop, especially as a felony stop. I also place some "blame" on the guys who didn't close the car door, but in the end a dog advanced on the cop.

It's a sad, unfortunate situation, that could have been handled much better, but I have no problem with the shoot under the conditions that were presented to the cop who shot the dog at that instant.
 
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