OH Officer Cleared In Dog Shooting

[cheekymunkee]

Officer Cleared In Dog Shooting
Last Edited: Tuesday, 24 Jun 2008, 8:11 PM EDT
Created: Tuesday, 24 Jun 2008, 8:11 PM EDT
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The Medina police officer who shot and killed a dog while responding to a noise complaint has been cleared of any wrongdoing and the dog's owner is not happy about it.

Medina Police Chief Dennis Hanwell says his female officer had to act quick because she says the dog was menacing and coming at her when she responded to a noise complaint on South Court Street around 8:15 the night of June 10th.

Hanwell says "she's coming up along the side of the house, the dog comes around from the back of the house, so she begins to back up. At the time she backing up, the dog sees her. She says within seconds, that dog is right in front of her."

Hanwell says his officer did have the option to use pepper spray, but she didn't feel that would stop the dog and she had her taser which would have shot two electrical probes temporarily disabling the dog. Hanwell adds, "in this case with the chest size of the animal and the close proximity, she did not feel she would be able to get both probes in and one missing is not going to do anything. The last thing she thought she has one chance to stop the aggression of this animal."

The officer shot Senz's three year old boxer named Karma three times.

The dog's owner Allen Senz attended Monday night's Medina City Council meeting urging Council to look at changing laws when it comes how police respond to dog's on their own property.

Medina City Law Director Greg Huber says the law is a State Law and "in Ohio, under title 955, if your dog is unrestrained, which this dog was, if your dog was not confined, this dog was not confined and if this dog was not being directly supervised on your property and it approaches a person, to use the words of the statute "in a menacing manner", you literally have a legal right to put the dog down."

Police issued tickets to Senz for loud noise and for an unrestrained dog. Chief Hanwell says all of the facts of this case will come out during Senz's trial.



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