A St. Louis cop investigating a double-homicide Wednesday pulled out a gun to kill a dog, but ended up shooting the dog’s owner instead, who happened to be the mother of one of the murder victims.
The woman was struck in the leg and will survive.
The dog, who was not shot, apparently did not attack the cop as he had feared. The cop’s name has not been released.
According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
A woman whose son was killed in a double homicide Wednesday was shot in the leg when police fired at her dog during an incident at a home near the homicide scene Thursday afternoon.
Chief Sam Dotson told reporters that at least three officers responded to a home in the 4400 block of Taft Avenue at the request of Missouri’s Children’s Division, as social workers tried to remove a 1-year-old from the home. Officers also were in the area investigating a double homicide that occurred in front of the home about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, he said.
When the social workers and at least one officer made their way into the home, a pit bull jumped a waist-high barricade that was keeping it confined to the kitchen and ran toward the officer and the social workers, Dotson told reporters.
The officer then fired one shot at the dog fearing it would attack him or the social workers, but struck a 42-year-old woman in the leg who was trying to contain the dog, he said.
Dotson characterized the woman’s injury as non-life-threatening and minor.
The shooting is reminiscent of another incident that took place in Iowa in January where a cop, also fearing for his life, shot at a dog, only to strike the dog’s owner, Autumn Steele, killing her.
The dog was only grazed and did not attack Burlington police officer Jesse Hill, who was cleared of any wrongdoing in that incident.
Then in June, an Ohio cop, also fearing for his life, shot at a family dog, only to strike a four-year-old girl instead.
Ava Ellis was struck in the leg and survived. And miraculously the dog did not attack Columbus police officer Jonathan Thomas as he had feared, even though it did not get shot.
Ellis, who is now five, continued to ask her mother, “Mommy, am I going to die?” after she was shot.
The post St. Louis Cop Shoots at Dog, Striking Owner Instead, Managing Not to Get Attacked appeared first on PINAC.