United States News
See other United States News Articles
Title: Kansas Cop Kills Army Veteran’s Service Dog, then Issues him Two Citations
Source:
Photography Is Not a Crime
URL Source: https://photographyisnotacrime.com/ ... 0Army%20Veteran%27s%20Service%
Published: Apr 18, 2017
Author: Ben Keller
Post Date: 2017-04-19 10:51:28 by Deckard
Keywords: None
Views: 19040
Comments: 131
A Kansas cop shot and killed the service dog of an army veteran who suffers from PTSD on Thursday, according to the Daily Haze. Augusta police officer Devon Keith says he was forced to shoot Alan Fitzgerald’s dog “Midnite” claiming the dog charged an animal control officer after ramming a door until it opened – making the animal control officer fear for his life. But Fitzgerald said his dog didn’t do anything wrong and officer Keith shot him for no reason. Alan Fitzgerald and his service dog, Midnite, before a cop shot and killed it. Neighbors who witnessed the shooting said the animal control officer was the one who opened the door and began acting aggressively towards the dog before shooting it. Augusta police, along with animal control, showed up at Fitzgerald’s house Thursday afternoon after a neighbor called to complain about a German Shepard. Fitzgerald said Midnite got out on Thursday, presumably chasing rabbits and cats as he often did. Midnite ended up several mobile homes down from his home, hovering over a neighbor’s small dog. “It’s how he plays,” Fitzgerald explained. Fitzgerald talked to the small dog’s owner, who said the smaller dog wasn’t hurt, just “shaken up” from Midnite towering over it. Things settled and Fitzgerald returned home and was in the shower when he heard Midnite bark and then gunshots. “All of a sudden, I heard this pound pound pound on the screen door,” Fitzgerald recalled. “And I heard Midnite barking, obviously he’s going to bark because he’s guarding the house. All of a sudden then I heard shots fired and I heard my dog screaming in agony.” Fitzgerald came out to see what was going on only to have a gun pointed at him inside of his own house. “I got halfway out the door, and about right here where this crack is, there’s an officer standing with his gun pointed at me. I said ‘what are you guys doing here, why did you kill my dog?’ he said, ‘Get on the ground’, I said, ‘I’m not gonna get on the ground so I went inside and slammed the door,” he told KSN. August Police Chief Tyler Brewer defended officer Keith. “The animal control officer felt in fear for his life,” the chief said. “These officers feel horrible for having to do that.” According to chief Brewer, when the animal control officer knocked on the door, Midnite answered. “The front door was open but the glass screen door was shut,” Brewer explained. “The dog rushed and hit the glass of the screen door and startled the animal control officer.” Officer Keith was forced to shoot Midnite when the animal control officer fell off the porch, hitting his head, trying to bite the officer, according to Brewer. Midnite But Fitzgerald’s neighbor Charmin Drake says the dog got out because the animal control officer actually opened the door, not Midnite, then entered without a warrant and began kicking and even hitting Midnite with a baton. After beating the dog, officers went outside and shot Midnite. Then they issued Fitzgerald two citations for having a vicious animal. Fitzgerald rescued Midnight in 2015 and obtained an ADA service dog certificate, which required the dog to pass behavioral tests without showing signs of aggression, and said he had Midnite for his PTSD. “Whenever I was having some sort of episode of oncoming anxiety, he knew what to do. He’d come up and nudge me or do something silly. He’d turn over on his back and give that little smile, you know, that dogs give. I’m just going to miss all of that.” Check out the Daily Haze interview with Alan Fitzgerald below. Poster Comment: “The animal control officer felt in fear for his life,” the chief said. Of course he did - the frigging sadistic coward.
Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread
Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest
Comments (1-23) not displayed.
.
.
.
#24. To: Deckard (#0)
Te cop and animal control officer both need 10 years in the slammer to reconsider their actions.
BTW, if this dog Midnite was so gentle, why did his owner have a prominent "BEWARE OF THE DOG" sticker in the middle of the storm door? Did the Krooked Kops just slap that on there or something?
Are we going to start casting doubt on every case we read about because they relied on eyewitness testimony? I don't think so. Despite the problems with eyewitnesses (including cops and trained observers), those are often all you've got to prosecute a case with.
Yes there are a lot of bad cops, and disguised as a mild mannered reporter he's Fighting for Truth, Justice, and the American Way! This dog was trained to help a man, and was shot. This incident was so sense less, and unnecessary. One day Karma will pay that cop a visit.
Si vis pacem, para bellum Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God. Never Pick A Fight With An Old Man He Will Just Shoot You He Can't Afford To Get Hurt I am concerned for the security of our great nation; not so much because of any threat from without, but because of the insidious forces working from within." -- General Douglas MacArthur
WHAT?
Hmmm...not only are the cops in that town encouraged to shoot non-aggressive service dogs, but it's also a place that does not allow freedom of assembly. Sounds like a place Gatlin would enjoy living in. Augusta Police exonerate officer who killed a veteran’s service dog. Of course they did. He used the magic words "I feared for my life". You should use that for a tagline. Or just shorten it to "I fail". That would be even more accurate. Thanks for the prompt … I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot. How is that for a tagline?
Multiple neighbors who witnessed the shooting claim to have seen Officer Devon Keith enter Fitzgerald’s home, without permission, at which point he got into a confrontation with Midnite. Neither Fitzgerald or his mother were in the front of the residence when the shooting happened. Multiple witnesses say they saw Keith kick Midnite multiple times before finally shooting the German Sheperd. Despite witness accounts, the officer who shot Midnite has been exonerated because he feared for his life. Augusta Public Safety Director Tyler Brewer has been doing everything in his power to make sure the police narrative is what is heard. The Wichita Eagle released an article so biased towards the police narrative that Brewer might as well written it. It is common for local media outlets to side with police in the area, as they deal with them so frequently. It is something we have witnessed happen time and time again all over the country. In this case, Brewer’s account of how the shooting played out just does not seem to add up. ***** Just go to settings. You can add your appropriate tagline in a few simple steps. Hmmm...not only are the cops in that town encouraged to shoot non-aggressive service dogs, but it's also a place that does not allow freedom of assembly. Sounds like a place Gatlin would enjoy living in. Most all cities do. Sounds to me like a bunch of libertarian assholes feel they can do whatever they want to and say “f**k you” to the city and all ordinances. That is the way you libertarians operate….right? Of course it’s right …
Done ...
I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
So, then Keith shot the dog inside the houes, threw the dog out through the bottom of the storm door and the dead dog landed on the outside edge of the porch. Ger real!!! You obviously didn’t look at the pictures in the link supplied by TC ... I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
Wait just a minute. It was reported that multiple neighbors saw Keith enter the house. Then it was reported that multiple neighbors saw Keith kick the dog multiple times. Query: How could the multiple neighbors see Keith kicking the dog inside the house? Only if the multiple neighbors were standing on the porch looking directly inside the house. Too many reports of too many neighbors seeing too many things … You yellow journalism article is a fraud….face it. I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
ROTFLMAO … Pot <> Kettle = Black. As many biased yellow journalism articles you post, that you should call a local newspaper article biased is the absolute ultimate height of hypocrisy. You are amazing….amazingly ridiculous. I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
Some folks who want to hold a candlelight vigil to show their support for a man whose dog was killed by a sadistic cop - all libertarians? You need to get some help for your obsession with all things libertarian. ...say “f**k you” to the city... The city (by exonerating the sadistic cop) has said "fuck you" to the residents there. There was no investigation, they didn't even talk to any of the witnesses. As we have seen time and time again, cops can use the magic words "I feared for my life" and be cleared of any crime. Shoot a 5 pound dachshund? "I feared for my life". Shoot a kid holding a wii controller? "I feared for my life". Same shit, different day. These Pictures? In the article, Brewer continues to push the story that Midnite came “blasting up” and hit the glass door. Midnite charged the door a second time, which broke the latch loose. Midnite was a 4-year-old 85 lbs. German Shepherd. Surely the glass door that he was “blasting up” against would have suffered some damage from Midnite charging so hard it resulted in “breaking the latch loose.” TDH requested Fitzgerald send us pictures of his door. This is how the door currently looks after Midnite allegedly broke through it just two days ago. We went to the Fitzgerald residence just hours after the shooting. Our entire time there, the front door was open and the glass door was closed, just as it was earlier in the afternoon. We entered and exited through the door with no problem what-so-ever. There was no apparent damage to the door, or the latch. After busting through the glass door Midnite allegedly charged at the animal control officer, causing him to fall backward on the porch and hit his head. Amazingly, the officer managed to shoot Midnite as he was “flying through the air” towards the animal control officer. Again, physical evidence shows Brewer’s narrative to be not impossible, but highly improbable. The Fitzgerald’s do not have a large porch. Below are pictures of Fitzgerald’s porch. The pictures give an idea of the porch’s size and how hard it would be to fall backward on it, not to mention shoot a dog lunging off of it in midair. Multiple neighbors claim to have seen Keith open the glass door and enter the house. Witnesses claim he was then seen kicking and struggling with the dog. Brewer claims to have witnesses contradicted that account, yet there is no information on who these witnesses are. Fitzgerald’s neighbor told TDH that they did not even get to give their statements to an officer. They were not interviewed, and instead told to give written statements that were later dismissed for reasons unknown. I called them libertarians because they feel they are above the law and don’t need a permit to demonstrate. That’s the libertarian creed….”fuck the law.” I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
The Supreme Court has held that it is constitutionally permissible that local governments require a permit to conduct a peaceful assembly. However, Augusta city officials are pushing that rule more than they should be. A permit is typically required if it is going to be a march or parade that does not stay on the sidewalk and other events that require blocking traffic or street closure, a large rally requiring the use of sound amplifying devices; or a rally at certain designated parks or plazas. The vigil for Midnite does not meet any of those basic guidelines. The City of Augusta was said to have stated they would not issue a permit for Midnite’s vigil. This alone is a problem. The Supreme Court has made it very clear that Government officials cannot prohibit a public assembly in their own discretion. While some permits can take weeks to obtain, the First Amendment prohibits such an advance notice requirement from being used to prevent rallies or demonstrations that are rapid responses to unforeseeable and recent events. Yet the bottom of the glass storm door is broken open where the dog crashed through. So, Keith went into the house, shot the dog and threw the dog out of the house through the bottom of the storm door? Give me a break. That’s make no sense….someone is lying. I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
The picture shows the bottom of the glass strom door and screen broken through. If the dog did not come “blasting up” through the door….then what, or who, did? One or both of the officers. Get real … Brewer’s version makes sense … I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
That is a lie! He used the magic words, "I feared for my partner's life." You recall the other guy, the animal control henchman who almost fell off the porch, forcing him to shoot the dog.
Well, it was a trailer park apparently. So at least one neighbor would have had a living room or kitchen window right next to the porch and less than 20' away. At least, that would be typical. However, given how these trailer parks are laid out, any other nearby residents would have been 50'-75' away and looking at a poor angle at the porch and probably couldn't see inside the house since it was daylight outside and the inside of the house was dark. This is all consistent with the photos we've seen.
In the pix you posted, I see the neighboring trailer with a window whose blind was drawn. It looks like they have left a blank trailer lot between the two trailers and they're planting some tree or bush there. So any neighbor who is a witness would be 50' away or so.
Suppose the dog owner had shot the cop. You think the city would have insisted that any candle vigils would have to have a permit or they would get ticketed? I don't. Seems kinda chickenshit to pull that permit business. Obviously, the city didn't want to get any more heat for this doggie shooting.
Your pictures are either taken before the shooting or after the shooting, when the porch was cleaned up and the door fully repaired. Here is a picture of the dead dog with blood all over the porch. Here is a picture of the storm door bottom with the glass and screen broken through. Someone in your pictures did a clean up, repair and cover up to hide the evidence. Or someone in my pictures replaced the good door with a broken bottom bad door and planted a dead dog with blood all over the porch. Which do you logically think it is? I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
Yep, and the SCOTUS did not say that the City of Augusta could not pass an ordinance to require a permit for a public demonstration to assemble. Check it out….numerous cities have an ordinance requiring a permit and it has never been challenged in the SCOTUS. Another futile effort at spinning on your part….give it up. I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
The permit is for the protection of the city against lawsuits. Of course, anyone can sue the city regardless as to a permit consideration. But at least the city is partially covering its ass. I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
I don't. I do. I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
It looks like they have left a blank trailer lot between the two trailers and they're planting some tree or bush there. So any neighbor who is a witness would be 50' away or so. "Multiple neighbors"..."multiple neighbors".... I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
Bullshit….nothing amazing about that at all. I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
The article I read said he fell backwards “off of the porch”….meaning backwards down the steps. Debunked again….give it up. I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
I did a little search at DDG. No doubt, Google and Bing and others would yield the same results. WhitePages.com: Alan Fitzgerald in Augusta KS Google Maps: 1604 Cedar Ln, Augusta, KS So you can go into the map and drag-drop the little yellow stick figure on the street where it is marked and see a Street View in all directions around this trailer house. I'll try to embed it below. Google made a mistake with the street number and think it is 1585 Cedar Ln, not 1604 (Google is really bad at street numbers in trailer parks). But that covered porch with the red railings and the little shrub growing out front, it all looks consistent with the photos posted above. So here is the embedded image of the place. Judge for yourself. (Hit that little square icon at the upper-right to go full-screen and see the property in greater detail.) One thing I noticed immediately was that Midnite would still be alive if his owner had loved his dog enough to build a small yard fence. His neighbors loved their dogs/kids enough to build fences for them.
When has a fence ever stopped a crazed cop from shooting a family pet? Heartbroken Salt Lake City man berates cops after they shoot dog in back yard Cops Show Up To Wrong House And Shoot Little Boy’s Dog The town's chief of police, Ken Moore, says the shooting was justifiable. The dog, he claims, was showing signs of aggression and appeared to be a "dangerous" breed. A pit bull mix. (Pit bulls have a very undeserved reputation.) "We have a right to defend ourselves so I stand by my officer in the decision that he made," Moore told News 9. Never mind reports that the officer used a high-powered rifle he took out of his car to shoot the dog through a fence. Or that a computer glitch may have led officers to the wrong address. This one taken before the shooting or after the shoot when the door had been repaired….shows the storm door with the window and screen intact. This one taken when the do way laying dead on the porch with blood everywhere shows the bottom window and screen broken trhough. Either someone’s lying or the pictures are lying….which do you think? I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
Well, at least there is some misreporting. Maybe to help gin up a clickbait headline on a cop-hater site. You've probably noticed that "Beware Of The Dog" sign that I mentioned on the door by now. If Midnite was such a well-trained and non-aggressive dog, why did he post that sticker?
Heartbroken Salt Lake City man berates cops after they shoot dog in back yard Cops Show Up To Wrong House And Shoot Little Boy’s Dog Stop trying to change the subject. We are discussing this guy and his dog in Augusta KS. Not anyone else. You're trying to conflate those other incidents with this one. It doesn't work.
When has a fence ever stopped a crazed cop from shooting a family pet? Countless times….when a family pet pit bull was completely docile and not attacking a cop. But, of course….The Free Through Project never reports that….does it? I fail to understand Deckard, he is a complete idiot.
Your contention that a fence would have saved Midnite was a supposition on your part. I merely pointed out your misconception.
Comments (64 - 131) not displayed.
Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest
#25. To: Deckard, Gatlin (#21)
#26. To: Gatlin (#23)
Deckard seems to rely heavily on the eye witness accounts in the articles he posts.
#27. To: Gatlin, Truth Justice and the American Way, Super Journalists (#10)
(Edited)
Do you kinda get the theme of what Ben is all about and what his motives are.
The D&R terrorists hate us because we're free, to vote second party
"We (government) need to do a lot less, a lot sooner" ~Ron Paul
#28. To: rlk (#24)
#29. To: Tooconservative, Deckard (#25)
BTW, if this dog Midnite was so gentle, why did his owner have a prominent "BEWARE OF THE DOG" sticker in the middle of the storm door?
#30. To: Tooconservative, Gatlin, hondo68 (#17)
City of Augusta says arrests will be made for those who attend a candlelit vigil for a veteran’s service dog that was shot by an Augusta police officer last week
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#31. To: Gatlin (#10)
(Edited)
I fail to understand
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#32. To: Deckard (#31)
#33. To: Tooconservative, Gatlin, hondo68, Stoner (#17)
Augusta Police exonerate officer who killed a veteran’s service dog
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#34. To: Gatlin (#32)
I fail
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#35. To: Deckard (#30)
City of Augusta says arrests will be made for those who attend a candlelit vigil for a veteran’s service dog that was shot by an Augusta police officer last week
Nah, the city of Augusta requires an ordinance for a demonstration.
#36. To: Deckard (#34)
#37. To: Deckard, Tooconservative (#33)
Multiple neighbors who witnessed the shooting claim to have seen Officer Devon Keith enter Fitzgerald’s home, without permission, at which point he got into a confrontation with Midnite.
#38. To: Deckard (#33)
Neither Fitzgerald or his mother were in the front of the residence when the shooting happened. Multiple witnesses say they saw Keith kick Midnite multiple times before finally shooting the German Sheperd.
#39. To: Deckard (#33)
The Wichita Eagle released an article so biased towards the police narrative that Brewer might as well written it. It is common for local media outlets to side with police in the area, as they deal with them so frequently. It is something we have witnessed happen time and time again all over the country.
#40. To: Gatlin (#35)
(Edited)
Sounds to me like a bunch of libertarian assholes
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#41. To: Gatlin (#37)
You obviously didn’t look at the pictures in the link supplied by TC ...
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#42. To: Deckard (#40)
#43. To: Gatlin (#42)
I called them libertarians because they feel they are above the law and don’t need a permit to demonstrate.
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#44. To: Deckard (#41)
Multiple neighbors claim to have seen Keith open the glass door and enter the house. Witnesses claim he was then seen kicking and struggling with the dog.
#45. To: Deckard (#44)
In the article, Brewer continues to push the story that Midnite came “blasting up” and hit the glass door. Midnite charged the door a second time, which broke the latch loose.
#46. To: Deckard (#30)
Of course they did. He used the magic words "I feared for my life".
#47. To: Gatlin (#38)
(Edited)
Query: How could the multiple neighbors see Keith kicking the dog inside the house?
#48. To: Deckard (#41)
#49. To: Deckard (#43)
The City of Augusta was said to have stated they would not issue a permit for Midnite’s vigil. This alone is a problem. The Supreme Court has made it very clear that Government officials cannot prohibit a public assembly in their own discretion.
#50. To: Deckard (#41)
Midnite was a 4-year-old 85 lbs. German Shepherd. Surely the glass door that he was “blasting up” against would have suffered some damage from Midnite charging so hard it resulted in “breaking the latch loose.”
In your pictures, there is no blood on the porch where the dog lay shot. 
#51. To: Deckard (#43)
The City of Augusta was said to have stated they would not issue a permit for Midnite’s vigil. This alone is a problem. The Supreme Court has made it very clear that Government officials cannot prohibit a public assembly in their own discretion.
#52. To: Tooconservative, Deckard (#49)
Seems kinda chickenshit to pull that permit business.
#53. To: Tooconservative (#49)
You think the city would have insisted that any candle vigils would have to have a permit or they would get ticketed?
#54. To: Tooconservative, Deckard (#48)
In the pix you posted, I see the neighboring trailer with a window whose blind was drawn.
#55. To: Deckard (#41)
After busting through the glass door Midnite allegedly charged at the animal control officer, causing him to fall backward on the porch and hit his head. Amazingly, the officer managed to shoot Midnite as he was “flying through the air” towards the animal control officer.
#56. To: Deckard (#41)
The pictures give an idea of the porch’s size and how hard it would be to fall backward on it
#57. To: Gatlin, Deckard (#44)
(Edited)
#58. To: Tooconservative (#57)
(Edited)
One thing I noticed immediately was that Midnite would still be alive if his owner had loved his dog enough to build a small yard fence.
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#59. To: Deckard (#41)
We went to the Fitzgerald residence just hours after the shooting. Our entire time there, the front door was open and the glass door was closed, just as it was earlier in the afternoon. We entered and exited through the door with no problem what-so- ever. There was no apparent damage to the door, or the latch.
Compare the two pictures of the storm door. 
#60. To: Gatlin (#59)
(Edited)
Either someone’s lying or the pictures are lying….which do you think?
#61. To: Deckard (#58)
When has a fence ever stopped a crazed cop from shooting a family pet?
#62. To: Deckard (#58)
One thing I noticed immediately was that Midnite would still be alive if his owner had loved his dog enough to build a small yard fence.
#63. To: Tooconservative (#61)
Stop trying to change the subject. We are discussing this guy and his dog in Augusta KS. Not anyone else.
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
.
.
.
[Home] [Headlines] [Latest Articles] [Latest Comments] [Post] [Mail] [Sign-in] [Setup] [Help] [Register]