Boulder – A police officer shot and killed a pit bull over the weekend after the dog bit two people at a popular park and then moved aggressively toward the officer.
Immediately after the shooting, the dog’s owner, 18-year-old Erie resident Sarah Mallory, picked up the dying dog and sobbed, according to a police report.
She later told police that her dog “had issues” and had been abused as a puppy. She asked officers if they had ever “had one of your children shot in front of you,” according to the report, and she said she didn’t realize the dog was off its leash.
Mallory was cited for having an aggressive dog and for having a dog at large.
“It was acting aggressively to anyone who walked by it,” Boulder police spokeswoman Julie Brooks said. “This was a crowded park on Sunday.”
A Boulder resident called police to Ebin G. Fine Park on Sunday afternoon after, she said, a white pit bull attacked her while she was walking with her 1-year-old son and her partner. The caller was not hurt but said the pit bull had attacked and lunged at others too.
Officer Jeremy McGee arrived first and met a Berthoud man who said he was jogging when the dog bit him on the leg, opening a gash. McGee walked toward the dog and Mallory, according to his report, and said the dog ran toward him, growling. He said he shouted at Mallory several times to control her dog, but she did not respond.
Finally, fearing the dog would attack, McGee said he pointed his gun at the dog and shot it twice.
Mallory could not be reached for comment Monday.
The shooting created a commotion in the creek-side park. One officer said in his report that a large crowd gathered at the scene, with many yelling at the officers. Others, according to police reports, told officers that the dog had threatened numerous people and that Mallory had done little to control it.
Brooks said McGee was about 3 to 4 feet from the dog when he shot it and said he considered the safety of the shot before pulling the trigger.
She said she didn’t know of any other times this year when an officer has shot a dog and said the officers weren’t picking on pit bulls.
“Breed aside, had it been any dog acting in that manner this dog was, the officer, not seeing any other option, would have taken this action,” she said. “The breed is not what we see.”
Staff writer John Ingold can be reached at 720-929-0898 or jingold@denverpost.com.
Para leer este artículo en español, vaya a denverpost.com/aldia
