Doggycide: Texas cops shoot & kill family’s Saint Bernard

Payton with little boy

Just more of the usual police incompetence in dealing with household pets:

LUBBOCK, TX (KCBD) - A Lubbock family has now hired an attorney after a police officer shot their dog while responding to their home being invaded last week.

John Espinoza, the owner of the house on the 6400 block of 33rd Street, said he left his garage open while he and his family were at home. He says intruders armed with large guns entered his home through the garage and asked for his wallet and his wife's purse. Espinoza refused to surrender the items, he said. Unarmed, he chased the assailants through the backyard to the next street, he said.

"At the time I didn't care if they shot me, I wasn't going to stop," said Espinoza, "The reason why they didn't take anything is they came in and I put up a fight. I got out and it's one o'clock in the afternoon. I'm yelling and kicking the gate."

That's when Payton, the family's Saint Bernard got out, Espinoza said.

Espinoza's wife called the police and officers responded to the home invasion call. The family is thankful they are safe, but it's the actions of the police that have them considering a lawsuit.

Police say when officers approached the house, the dog ran aggressively at them out of the open garage. Police shot the dog in the front yard. Espinoza says the officer shot Payton in front of his wife and two daughters.

"The officer just shot him in the head and she said when he shot him, she just saw his head rock and dust everywhere and he just fell down," said Espinoza.

Of course, anyone who has any idea what the Saint Bernard breed is like will immediately understand that the only way the cops could not be guilty of excessive force is if the pooch had somehow turned rabid the second it spotted the officers. St. Bernards are renown for being just about the most docile and kind-spirited animal out there. This effectively makes it just about impossible that the cops acted reasonably in pumping lead into poor Payton’s skull right in front of the family.

As usual, the cops didn’t even let the family take the poor creature’s remains, rather waiting for the animal services to come and take the body. Because if you’re gonna slaughter an innocent animal for no good reason, might as well go full dickhole about it.

(via The Agitator)

Tags: Payton • John Espinoza • Saint Bernard