PAVO, Ga. (WALB) – A South Georgia couple who has a love for dogs now without two of their pets.
“They were very sweet, very loveable, non-aggressive,” said John, the dog’s owner.
John is mourning the loss of his dogs, Blackey and Brownie. He said he rescued them as puppies last year, but in January, investigators said Pavo Police Officer Joshua Fletcher shot and killed them while responding to an animal control call.
He is now charged with two counts of animal cruelty, two counts of possession of a firearm during a commission of a crime, and one count of violation of oath. Today, the owners of the dogs that were killed are speaking out.
In the incident report, Fletcher said a neighbor told him the dogs were mean and feral. Fletcher also said one of the dogs tried to bite him, and that led to the shooting. The dog’s owner said they were just trying to find their way back home.
The National Sheriff’s Association cites the Department of Justice, saying, “The majority of officer-involved shootings involve animals, most frequently dogs.” They also said the solution may be implementing dog behavior and physiology training. WALB found that the training is only mandated in some states. Georgia is not one of them.
The Interim Pavo Police Chief Terry Gibson said he’s unable to comment on the ongoing investigation. However, he was able to tell WALB that the department does not have animal behavior or psychology training, and in the future, he plans to look into the training.
WALB also spoke to other agencies about the training. Crisp County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Denise Youngblood said they also don’t implement the training but instead work side by side with the county’s animal control.
“So we have had some insight into the behavior of animals and how to best deal with them and contain them on calls,” she said.
Fletcher is still suspended from the Pavo Police Department. District Attorney Brad Shealy said the next step is preparing this case for a grand jury if the evidence is sufficient. The owners of the dogs said they hope this tragedy can lead to some solutions for unlawful officer-involved dog shootings nationwide.
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