It is easy to condemn this police officer, but before we rush to judgment, we perhaps should attempt to put ourselves in the shoes of the officer.
Police officers must react with amazing rapidity to all kinds of things that most of us could never even dream up. They must make split-second decisions in assessing a potentially dangerous situation. Sadly, it is not uncommon in the slightest for criminals to train dogs to be, essentially, weapons. So it is not at all unreasonable for an officer who believes that a serious crime has been committed to believe that a dog traveling with the suspects could be dangerous. It is easy to look at that footage, while we are sitting relaxed and comfortable at our computers, and see what that dog's real intentions were. But in the heat of an arrest and a situation perceived to be dangerous, a police officer simply can't see all the nuances that we can. There just isn't time. I'm not condoning the officer's actions -- I don't think any of us know enough yet to really say if he was right or not. My heart goes out to the family for the loss of their beloved pet and for the trauma of witnessing it. But I strongly believe that it is wrong to be accusing that officer of malicious and stupid action until the facts are more clearly known. Police officers risk their lives for all of us on a daily basis. They at least deserve the benefit of the doubt. And, lest we forget, don't you imagine the officer feels terribly guilty for what happened? He may also feel justified, but I would bet that he feels just terrible for killing the dog, especially in front of the family. Just my two cents, Julia Lily & Max Astoria, OR
