Doggycide in Florence, Texas

Sassy

Wanton murder and reckless endangerment, all in this report out of the town of Florence, Texas:

"She's crying, she's hysterical. 'There's blood mom. She's shooting guns.'" Louise Vybiral describes the phone call she received from her daughter Caren Friday afternoon.

Caren says she was watching a movie with her two year old daughter Lilly when gunshots rang out. She thought they were coming from across the street.

"Thought maybe Chevron was being robbed or something. I didn't have any idea what was going on," Caren Vybiral said. "And when I walked to open the door, there was another gun shot."

Caren said Sassy [the Rhodesian Ridgeback] was lying in the door way bleeding. And standing above her was Florence Police Chief Julie Elliot-Abshire. After a short exchange, Caren said the chief ran to the back yard and shot the other family dog that was locked up, a two year old pit bull named Boomer.

"I asked her what is going on," Caren described, "and she said, um, the b-word, did you not hear me knocking on your front door. And I said no, why did you shoot my dogs?"

Apparently Sassy and Boomer got out of the back yard and walked to the Chevron. A city worker called the cops to report the loose dogs. A family friend put the dogs back into the yard, but Sassy got out again.

"It got out, I'm guilty of that, but it was laying on the porch when she shot it," Louise Vybiral said.

But what truly frightens this family, one of the shots went into the home. Fragments of a bullet still lie on the windowsill.

This is new; usually, it’s the underlings who act with callous disregard for life or empathy, while some bored official just spins a bunch of platitudes about how they’re all upstanding officers who were genuinely threatened and had to put the evil ankle-biters down to save life, limb and society. One wonders what excuses we’ll be hearing this time, now that it’s the police chief, herself, who was caught opening fire with absolutely no possible rationalization, including on a dog that was tied up in the backyard and even through a window.

(via @radleybalko)

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Doggycide Bingo Index

Confirmed hits:

Dead Sassy

Wounded Boomer

Both dogs were just resting

Boomer was chained in backyard

Chief Elliot-Abshire shot first (twice)

No apology

Both shootings were in cold blood

No known disciplinary action taken

Shot into the house with mother and toddler present

Chief Elliot-Abshire walked into backyard without warrant or justification

Total: 10/25
FIRST BINGO! You all win a free sense of exasperated outrage. Use it well.

Tags: Sassy the Rhodesian Ridgeback • Boomer the pitbull • Louise Vybiral • Caren Vybiral • Florence, TX • Florence Police Department • Julie Elliot-Abshire