Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Florida: Father Shoots Neighbor's Pit Bull

Lantana, Florida

From CBS12 of November 21, 2008
Father Shoots Neighbor's Pit Bull

A local father shot and killed a neighbor's pit bull. The dog was loose and had followed a child into the dad's home.

Law enforcement says no one will face charges because of the incident-- not the father for shooting the dog in front of children, nor the pit bull's owner for letting the dog get out.

It happened in a quiet neighborhood west of Lantana, the dog shot in the driveway of the home of J.R. Martin. Martin declined comment.

But here's what the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office and Animal Control say happened. At least two girls were meeting at the Martin home for a ride to school. The pit bull followed one girl into the house and bit Martin's beagle. Martin first tried to scare away the pit bull with a BB gun, but the dog returned, reportedly growling at the children. Martin took out his .9 mm gun and shot the pit bull. The dog then ran down the street and died.

The shooting upset neighbor Ofelia Cravens. Prior to the shooting, Cravens said her daughter found the dog wandering down the street. Cravens said the pit bull was large, but friendly. Cravens said she and her daughter went up and down the street trying to find out who owned the dog. Cravens even put the dog in her garage for awhile.

"The next thing you hear is a shot," said Cravens. "And that was it. I'm very upset, because I could see if he was vicious dog. But he wasn't."

Cravens added, "I like J.R. And I respect him. But I sure as heck didn't know he had a gun."

Another neighbor tells CBS 12, there had to be a reason for Martin to take such an action.

Animal Control says the pit bull belonged to Fernando and Anna Flores, who live on another street. We were unable to reach the couple.

No comments:

Post a Comment