By Jack Burns
The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit concluded Monday that police officers are justified in killing citizens’ pets — even if those animals are not attacking or attempting to attack them.
Judges MOORE and CLAY (Circuit Judges), and HOOD (District Judge) heard an appeal from the plaintiffs Mark and Cheryl Brown, of Battle Creek, Michigan. The Browns filed a lawsuit against the BATTLE CREEK Police Department, the City of Battle Creek, and officers Jeffrey Case, Christof Klein, and Damon Young for the death of their beloved dogs at the hands of sadistic cops.
The incident occurred on April 17th, 2013, when police were attempting to execute a search warrant on the home where the Browns were living because a police informant reported another man, Vincent Jones, was distributing heroin, cocaine, and marijuana from the residence. Jones was apprehended before police arrived on the scene.
Mark Brown, who was not a suspect in the search, had gone home on his lunch break to let out his two pit bulls. After doing so, he locked the door and headed back to work when police arrived and detained him. He told them he had a key, and that they didn’t need to destroy the front door to gain entry into the home. But destroy it they did.
The Browns dispute the claims by police that the dogs were barking. Mark Brown even testified the smaller of the two dogs had “never barked a day in her life.” Officer Klein said the larger dog was barking and “lunged” at him, but later admitted the pet “had only moved a few inches.”
Despite there being no attack, Klein fired a round at the dog. Both dogs ran away from the officers to the basement, obviously fleeing in fear. There, the two dogs were shot and killed by the officers who felt that they could not properly clear the room and effectively execute the search warrant on the home, explaining they “did not feel [the officers] could safely clear the basement with those dogs down there.”
Going further, the officers stated the “basement was loaded. You’ve gotta look under beds, you’ve gotta do everything, and [the dogs] basically prevented us from doing that, and they were protecting that basement.” Klein testified the smaller pit bull was “just standing there” when it was shot and killed.
In spite of these sadistic admissions, the appellate court ruled in favor of the officers, the police department, and the other defendants. They agreed with the lower court ruling that the police officers were covered under “doctrine of qualified immunity” and were therefore not liable for compensating the plaintiffs in the case.
The precedent has now been set. Cops can legally kill your dogs for the sole act of being a dog. If your dog moves, it is dead. If your dog barks, it is dead. If your dog does anything but sit silently in the other room, it is dead. However, as the above case illustrates, even if they are silent in the other room, police can still kill them — just to make their search for arbitrary substances deemed illegal by the state — that much easier.
Jack Burns writes for TheFreeThoughtProject.com, where this article first appeared.
You want public opinion to go QUICKLY against the police just let more stories like this out into the public domain. Cops killing pets too. Black lives don’t matter but to the majority of Americans their pets sure do. I can’t imagine this to be left standing, especially with pets protecting their own homes as described in the article. But I know people who if they had to choose between that cop and the lives of their pets, the cops may be…disappointed with that decision. Anyway, so be it. And if that happens it may not be the right thing to do, nor would I do that or even condone it. But some would and that’s going to be the problem for the police. And for that I would at least…understand the public’s rage. And so will everyone else. The cops won’t win on this one no matter what they do. They’ll continue to get away with shooting people who don’t obey during traffic stops etc etc. However I’m predicting they won’t be allowed to continue killing family pets unless it’s under special circumstances specifically spelled out in the search warrants. Not just because they happen to live there and the cops are…nervous about that.
News flash, there are thousands of stories like this. I literally happens seversl time a day across America. Just check out the puppycide data base on Free Thought Project.
Hmmm
Seems to me if nothing else, such acts by the government, murdering a dog for barking, dogs of course being private property, is unconstitutional on its face. In fact using their idiotic line of reasoning law enforcement might soon be able to shoot you and I for exercising our right for something as innocent as filming them murdering innocent citizens for no legitimate reason from our own yards. Oh wait, I forget, they have been doing that for years…….
On this issue the 5th amendment is crystal clear I quote directly:
“…nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”
You kill my $1500 dog because it barked at a law enforcement officer and government owes me $1500. At some point the American people are going to say enough is enough and force our “public servants” to start obeying the Constitution instead of using government fiat to ignore it.
no…. they won’t ….. not until…… Not until We The People take back our local governments….. What corporation has the right to do any of this crap to us?…. why wasn’t the dog owners given a chance to secure the dogs?…. no….this is just another example of the government lording over We The People… I sure hope this gets to the Supreme Court….
There is only God’s law of the universe. If a pig kills my pet, I got nothing to lose and I’ll have my revenge.
@disqus_8lKXIBXe4i:disqus, I am of the same mind as you. If they kill my dog/s they have put tossed the gauntlet of war in my face. To borrow from a recent movie.
“Bob Lee Swagger: I don’t think you understand, these boys killed my dog.”
“Bob Lee Swagger: There’s going to be more shooting, more people are going to die. I didn’t start it, but I mean to see it through.”
I’ll check out that movie.
Agree. I would go full-blown “John Wick.”
My dogs belong at my house. They are not allowed to run free outside my home and land. Cops do not belong at or in my house. I consider my dogs life to be much more valuable to me and the world, than any cop out there. My dog has never done crooked BS, or harmed another living thing, something no cop can say. I will protect my dogs life against armed criminals.
What kind of dogs do you got? I feel the same as you. I never meet a person I like half as much as my dogs. This is Lulu…
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/1dba076816f287a47f4ad35f4d49f8f39c928f2a3a6da6836366d96c90212b7c.jpg
Beautiful girl. I am on a new computer, don’t have any photos in it yet, but will get some and show you. My wife and i have, (1), a female Corker Spaniard female, maybe 9 ish, Grand Dog which came to visit at about six months, by way of a daughter. (2) Something that is a mutt? Mid sized, blackish, foxy looking, off the street about half grown, maybe 7 ish. (3), A pure white female Boxer, my grandsons, his brilliant dad bought him a Boxer pup for his 6th birthday. They live in a tiny two bed room, in a three-story subdivided house, soooooo. (4) a about 2 1/2 year old male Maltipoo who loves everyone, even people that tell me dogs don’t like me, he loves them. Sweetheart, spoiled rotten, big chicken. (5), Wife’s two-two and a quarter pound Tee Cup Yorkie. Never seen a bigger mouth on that small a dog. Just added a hen and a gobbler, Old American Turkey breed i think my brother said, to the zoo. Sister in law got more built up than she had any use for. I said the kids didn’t have any turkeys in the zoo, so why not.
The picture of a lab is inappropriate as this law is intended for all the thugs with pitbulls they cannot control.
This story proves you are wrong. You might want to read it before engaging in falsehoods.
Well, this will certainly lead to more innocent dead dogs, and then more dead cops, probably the wrong ones.
What, no appeal allowed?
if they kill my dogs, they are dead too.
Add to the list, a older, maybe about 9 year old midsize Poodle. He came from the a Daughters house yesterday to live out his life at grandpas. Daughters husband don’t like the dog and the dog don’t like him. I agree with the dog. He belonged to an old man who could no longer care for him, daughter kept his a year or two. Sweet dog. I told her she understood that they did not need another dog, not even a puppy, cause daddy had enough dogs already. This does not include the two cats i have inherited from the. Youngest cat was a wild bunch that a grandson, “rescued” a kitten.
Your not the wife reminded me of a time my wife went to a Chiropractor. She came home all smiles and said he cracked her neck. Told he i had been temped many times to do the same thing.
Just don’t kill the judges’ pets – this is an unspoken agreement.
I know you’re wondering how a judge can love his own pet(s) while green-lighting the murder of the pets of others. I’d like an answer to that as much as you would!
Those judges need to be disbarred.
@LewiePaine:disqus, I would be doing that or John Wayne. I have 3 Great Pyrenees / Lab mix dogs that enjoy about 3 acres here. There’s a fourth that ‘technically’ is not ours yet I care for him, then their mama up the hill from us who often visits with her ‘kids’.
Recently, lost a Pit Bull / Lab mutt. He was well at least 15 human years old and had been dealing with what suspected was some cancer this last year. In the ending of his life it does not appear he suffered, lay down and dozed off in the forever nap. I kept him tied out of being polite toward neighbor children, I know he would not have bothered harming but rather ensure the boat not rock. He was a good ol’ soul that let me feel safe.
Now, the alpha of the GPs, pure ‘stoner’ dog what you can see working gears under the big old smile, helps do that. All of them given proper shots, taxed, tagged. Not that I view my critter ‘kids’ as property.
‘He was a good ol’ soul that let me feel safe.’
That pretty much sums it up. Dogs possess a spirituality that not everyone can understand.
Who are the Terrorists?
Brilliant.