THE killing of a dog by a police officer in North Toledo was unjustified for a couple of very good reasons, including public safety, which police are supposed to protect.
Residents of crowded neighborhoods such as the one in question have enough to fear from gang-bangers and other criminals. They shouldn't also be put in danger of police bullets fired in haste at an escaped family pet.
Simply put, police should not use lethal force against dogs or other animals except in extraordinary circumstances, which we do not find in the details about what happened on Mulberry Street on Monday.
A police incident report says that Officer Mike Murphy fired not once but three times at the dog, which he said charged him, "barking and acting in a vicious manner."
As it turned out, the year-old boxer named Capone was said by neighbors not to be dangerous, contradicting the officer's account. It was owned by a Hudson Street woman who trusted the animal with her three children. Rather than a vicious dog, it was a member of her family.
To add insult to injury, police had a second dog owned by the family hauled away to the pound to be held in lieu of a $90 fine. Even though neither animal had been licensed, the circumstances did not warrant treating the family so shabbily.The incident goes to the heart of police-community relations in one of Toledo's poorer neighborhoods. We cannot imagine a similar situation being handled in such a callous manner in other parts of the city.
Indeed, the dog probably wouldn't be dead had the county animal warden been called in the first place. Although a firearms review board will investigate to determine whether regulations were followed, there is little reason to believe conclusively that the dog was either "dangerous" or posed "an immediate threat," which the police manual specifies as reasons justifying killing an animal.
Animal-control officers are the appropriate personnel to respond to complaints of dogs running at large. Perhaps if Tom Skeldon, Lucas County's dog warden-for-life, was not so intent on drumming up extra revenue by sending his people door-to-door writing tickets for unlicensed pets, there would be sufficient personnel to respond to such incidents.
To protect themselves, police officers should carry repellent spray such as that used by postal workers. Considering the wider danger to neighborhood residents, there seems to be no logical reason for police to be firing their service weapons unless someone is firing at them.
Trigger-happy police don't belong in public service. This incident should be reviewed by a citizen panel, rather than risk a whitewash inside the police department.
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