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SALT LAKE CITY -- A Salt Lake City police officer is being praised and criticized by citizens for his actions in a park Tuesday afternoon. He shot and killed a pit bull that was running loose with another dog.
Police and several witnesses say the dogs were growling and behaving aggressively, but another witness says the officer was not justified in the shooting.
It was nice weather and a new puppy that prompted Shuqwuanna Ruffin and Qua'mya Pollock to go to Jefferson Park Tuesday, where they quickly came across two pit bulls.
"I couldn't handle the dog," Pollock said. "It was too strong."
The girls tried to push the dogs away, but they wouldn't leave. The girls yelled for help.
"It jumped on me when I picked my puppy up, then it tried to bite me," Pollock said.
"Yeah, it was getting really aggressive with her," Ruffin added.
Witness Casey Kimberly told KSL, "The girl was screaming. I pretty much thought they were in danger."
Nearby, a plain-clothes police officer was responding to a call from another witness about the dogs running loose and chasing people.
"They were off a leash, and they were acting very aggressive," said Salt Lake City police Sgt. Robin Snyder.
When the officer heard the girls screaming, he asked them to step aside as he pulled out his gun.
"They moved about three feet away, and he started firing at the dog, missing. He fired three or four different shots. I believe he hit him on the fourth shot," said Doug Schwartz, who also witnessed the incident.
Witnesses were mixed in their reaction to the officer's actions.
"I totally justify what he did," Kimberley said. "I think he did what needed to be done."
Schwartz, who works across the street, says just the opposite. From his viewpoint, the dogs weren't attacking the little girls, but just playing..
"It should not have happened. He should have assessed the situation better, realized that the dog wasn't a threat, and shouldn't have come into a park wanting to firing off shots at a dog that was playing with little girls," Schwartz said.
The dog was taken to an animal hospital for treatment but died there. The dog's owner says both animals escaped from their yard.
Salt Lake police are investigating whether the shooting was justified.
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Story compiled with contributions from Sarah Dallof, John Daley and Paul Nelson.
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