Clayton County, GA — A tragic and insidious puppycide was reported this week in Clayton County when an officer callously and sadistically shot a puppy in front of children.
A family is grieving after witnessing Clayton County police officer Walter Dennard walk up to their five-month-old lab-pit mix and shoot it, claiming the puppy “lunged at him.”
“He just shot the dog and stood there with no remorse, no regrets in front of her and her kids,” neighbor Aijohli King told Channel 2 after she witnessed the shooting.
Claudette Terry was moving into her new home when officers stopped to harass her friend who was sitting in the driveway. As two officers were questioning Terry’s friend, a third walked up and cowered in fear as a five-month-old puppy approached. He then pulled out his service weapon and fired without any regard for the children playing in the yard.
“My son opened the door the dog ran out and kind of stood by me where the other officers were,” Terry explained. “He didn’t bark, growl or anything.”
When she heard the gunshot, Terry thought her son was shot by this cowardly officer.
“When the gun went off, my son went down in the yard crying. I looked thinking my son may have been shot,” she said.
Neighbors who witnessed the shooting said the officer’s account of the puppy lunging at him was not true.
“He just took a step back and he just shot at the dog,” witness Brandon Smarr said. “And then he started laughing afterward.”
After recklessly discharging his weapon around multiple children, the officer then walked up to the puppy as it lay on the ground and put another round in him for good measure.
“The dog was shaking on the ground,” Terry said. “And he walked up to the dog and shot it a second time. He walked closer and shot it a second time.”
After this cop shot their beloved puppy, he then charged the mother with a crime.
According to WSB-TV, Officer Dennard’s file showed several use of force complaints, including a suspension for Tasing a suspect in the neck. But Terry is the one facing charges for not having her dog on a leash or showing rabies paperwork.
Clayton County police assure the community that they are investigating the incident.
