Euclid police officers who shot dog acted in self-defense
By: The Euclid Police Department has released the results of an internal investigation into the fatal shooting of a dog by officers last week, plus body camera video of the incident.
The shooting on February 6 came after officers of the Euclid Police Department were assisting the Cleveland Division of Police with an investigation into the reported kidnapping of a 35-year-old woman.
During the investigation, Euclid officers went to the victim's mother's home in the 21000 block of Crystal Avenue at around 11 p.m. While conducting an interview, officers encountered an "aggressive" 80-pound mixed-breed dog, who charged at them from inside the residence.
Body camera video shows one officer doing the interview, when the dog suddenly moves outside. "Officers are forced to defend themselves," text on the video says in a freeze-frame moment. A total of six shots were fired by two officers, hitting the dog three times. Police add that a total of eight second elapsed from the time the dog left the house until the last shot was fired.
"Officers are permitted to use deadly force to defend themselves and others against the imminent threat of death or serious physical harm," the Euclid Police Department wrote in its summary of the internal investigation. "It was positively determined that both of the Officers’ actions were within the policies and procedures of the agency."
Police elected to release the body camera video because of "several inaccuracies have been falsely reported and sadly repeated on multiple social media platforms. They severely distort what factually occurred."
You can watch the Euclid police body camera footage below. WARNING: Contains explicit language and graphic content
The dog was taken to a nearby animal hospital. Due to its severe injuries, the dog was euthanized by hospital staff at the request of the owner.
One Euclid officer was transported to a local hospital for injuries sustained during the incident and is currently on medical leave.
"It is both sad and unfortunate that Officers were forced to take this action resulting in the death of a beloved dog. The Euclid Police Department values all life, both human and animal, and we are saddened for the family’s loss," the department wrote in a release on Monday.