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Two Pit Bulls Shot By Deputy During Aggravated Assault Investigation
August 6, 2013
Two pit bills were shot by an Escambia County deputy in self defense Sunday during an aggravated assault with a firearm investigation, according to a press release issued Tuesday morning by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. Meanwhile, the couple that lives in the home where the shooting occurred is telling a different story.
Deputies had reason to believe that a suspect in the aggravated assault was at a home on Flynn Drive in West Pensacola, according to a press release. One suspect had already been arrested, and while looking for the second suspect around the perimeter of the home, deputies found one wide-open window with an upside down bucket under it. A footprint on the bucket led deputies to believe that someone might have made unlawful entry into the home.
“Repeated attempts were made to get someone to open the door, with no success. Deputies entered the house through the open window in effort to locate the suspect and to assure the safety of the occupants,” according to the ECSO statement.
Inside the home, deputies found two pit bull dogs that did not appear aggressive at first.
“Upon encountering the people in the house, the dogs became aggressive. One dog bit at one of the deputies’ leg. He pushed the dog away, but it came at him again so he shot the dog in self-defense, at which time, the second dog began to run towards him. For his personal safety, he shot the second dog,” the Sheriff’s Office said.
The couple that lives in the home has filed a complaint against the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
Cristina Moses and Travis Nicholas said they were sleeping when deputies entered the window and told them to come out with their hands up and lie on the ground. Moses said deputies fire at least three times at the dogs, prompting her to jump up and try to stop them. She said she was thrown to the ground as a deputy continued to fire his weapon inside her home.
No one in the home was arrested.
The dogs were transported to a local veterinary hospital by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. One animal was euthanized. The second dog was treated and returned to its owner.
The deputies were placed on administrative leave pending a thorough review of the incident, according to the Sheriff’s Office. The investigation into the aggravated assault with a firearm is ongoing and victims and witnesses were still being interviewed.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect the incident occurred Sunday. A press release on the incident was issued Tuesday morning by the Sheriff’s Office.
Comments
59 Responses to “Two Pit Bulls Shot By Deputy During Aggravated Assault Investigation”
There is no law that gives LE the right to enter someone home because they are looking for an aggrevated assault suspect. First we have the cops shooting a guy smoking a cigarette in his own car in front of his own house and now the cops are B and E someone’s home and shooting their dogs. We got serious problems
There has to be a better way than this. I have all the respect in the world to most 1st Responders. That being said. I also know some in the sheriffs office and local Police Officers that should not have that authority. They would find justification in shooting a poodle. They new the dogs where there. They had the house secure. Call animal control for the dogs. Sweep the rest of the house for the perp. There has to be time for rational thinking. Would I rather have a Pit or a crackhead come at me? A Pit hands down. All he can do is bite.
Inept police training here and its a wonder both officers and homeowners did not get shot. Really, no probable cause to enter (the jury will find that) but this wont get that far – the county will pay $$$$. (The poor taxpayer pays for this incompetent act) The Sheriff is responsible in the big picture – as he is in charge of training and its obvious he failed. The county commissioners had better make this go away real fast. We are sure you all have not heard the last from these six deputy’s, as just like felon’s, they repeat and the county will pay over an over, you cannot legislate common sense. With any luck the government will file charges and help the county make these problems go away.
Thanks William for your answer. I only went to look for the article after my parents told me about it. I just feel at times this new source doesn’t like to shed bad light on anything to do with The Sheriff and his deputies. Lord knows I do not think the Deputies make anything compared to what they should for all they do or put up with. But it does seems from reading these articles that there are some poor decisions being made by both the suspects and the LEO. I also have to doubt a Boss who is not supportive of his own people (just listening to his news conference). You may not agree with the way things are handled but you still are their boss. A great leader leads his people even when things are hard.
Feel free to call the Sherriff at 850-436-9630 and exspress your outrage.
watch out cat owners,if your kitty hisses at an officer BOOM!!!!! light’s out for puss!
same goes for gerbil’s and goldfish………
The deputies are lucky they didn’t get shot. If I woke up and someone came in thru one of my windows and was shooting a gun in my house , and at my dogs protecting my house, I would have shot him. Any criminal can find a uniform nowadays and claim to be a cop. Learn from this LEO: If it is an occupied residence, DO NOT go sneaking into to someones house. Knock at the front door because homeowners can and do shoot intruders.
I support the officers. Most people do not appreciate what these officers do everyday…….they protect you. They are not perfect. You are not perfect either.
REGARDING:
“The couple only woke up when they heard gun shots?! Those people must be some hard sleepers!”
Actually, “Cristina Moses and Travis Nicholas said they were sleeping when deputies entered the window and told them to come out with their hands up and lie on the ground.”
According to what we all read above, they claim the shooting came after that event. (One suspects somebody may be fibbing. It doesn’t make sense if deputies had knocked clearly and loudly called for them to open the door. It certainly doesn’t fit the claim they may have thought a rape or murder was going on. Hopefully the recordings and interviews will show more clearly exactly what happened and why and thereby and exonerate the officers.) Otherwise, that is a STRANGE way to protect us.
David for higher pay for officers,
better background checks,
best officers
(and lots of cameras)
The couple only woke up when they heard gun shots?! Those people must be some hard sleepers!
>>Funny how its trying to be hid at bottom of this website.
No one is hiding anything, and it is (at this moment) only about halfway down the page. It was at the very top of the page on Tuesday. By Wednesday, it became an older story and started to slide down the page.
WOW! You people really crack me up. So you are saying the cops had no right to enter the home. Fair enough.
So you come home from work one day to find your wife raped and murdered in your home. There are cops standing around saying, “We knocked on the door, but nobody answered”.
You walk to the back of your home and see an open window with an overturned bucket underneath it, a fresh foot print on it indicating someone may have stepped on it and entered the home…
YOU: Hey stupid cops! Didn’t you see this open window and this bucket someone obviously stepped on?
COPS: Yes, but how did we know you were not just washing your windows?
YOU: Weren’t you chasing a rapist/murderer in this neighborhood and lost him when he ran into my yard?
COPS: Yes
YOU: Then why didn’t you enter my home and save my wife? Like a rapist is going to answer the door when you knock on it!
COPS: We didn’t know if you had dogs or not, and we don’t feel like getting bit. Besides, we don’t have a warrant.
YOU: But my wife has been raped and murdered!
COPS: Yeah, that’s too bad, but we have to protect ourselves from lawsuits.
YOU: But now I’ll sue you for not saving my wife!
COPS: Yeah, good luck with that. We enter you home and shoot your aggressive dogs to save your wife, and we get sued. We stand outside and do nothing, and we get sued. Why should we even bother showing up? Sue the rapist.
REGARDING:
“find some place this does not exist. I would suggest Detroit.”
Would you really want the motto::
ESCAMBIA COUNTY — BETTER THAN DETROIT
??
We give them leeway because we know there are dangerous people out there and split second decisions sometimes have to be made. That doesn’t take away the right to question some of those decisions.
Since they were surely justified, they can explain what happened.
David for good people
Based on the obvious contempt some commentors have for ECSD there should be an overload of candidates at the police academy. For those of you that think you know exactly how YOU would handle it…..Put on the uniform or shut up. Unless you are a Combat Vet, Law Enforcement, Fire Fighter, etc you have no idea. To make matters worse yet, every situation is different. Remember that these men and women want to go home to their families when the day is done and if there is an incident like this their integrity is now under the microscope. If you have not been there, try it. If you just want to sit back on your soap box and continue to rant about wrong doing….find some place this does not exist. I would suggest Detroit.
I am sure, since this is the media and everything they put out there is true that everything in this story is true. We should be more worried about the media and people with guns shooting things. Poor dogs, whatever kind they were. The media-fueled hype about these type dogs has caused many a death and bad reputation for these type dogs. Truly ridiculous what they have done to these dogs just to get some ratings and yes, police need training to handle a dog situation better, especially when they come into your home. If there was wrong doing, I hope they can sue. As usual, these stories give very little, if any facts and only cause hysteria.
Some people need to understand the term Martial Law. It is the suspension of civil law enforcement to be replaced by soldiers of the army and civilian leadership replaced by a military officer. I do see this in our future.
I guess we don’t know the whole story but I can tell you know My 16 year old keeps my younger children while I work. I have a pit for one reason and that reason is to well…protect if he was to get killed while the police are trying to make sure my children are safe well I guess he would just be dead cause he was doing his job Point is except the real reason you have a dog trained to protect sometimes they get killed. I keep my dog restrained out of reach from anyone who does not live inn my home and everyone knows not to enter until he is put away I have had him for 6 years no problem just like anything that can cause harm you have to be responsible and yes I would have told the officer to shoot my dog cause that would have been his only choice these are animals not people its time to get over it and realize that.
I will bet any amount of money that if you had a gun in your hand and two pit bulls came at you and one was bitting on your leg and you couldn’t get them off you would shoot also. Now if you said you wouldn’t shoot you are braver than I. Now Mr. Morgan needs to put a policy into place where all officers are required to sit in their cars upon arrival to call til the situation corrects it’s self.No citizens hurt by officers. How would you like that policy.
I enjoy reading articles of this type. i like the outcome. i am glad the police were not seriously injured. Please people get a different dog.
There seems to be a few things wrong with this story.
Funny how its trying to be hid at bottom of this website. Secondly, what would have happened if I woke up to officers standing in my bedroom if I had not dialed 911? I don’t have a dog but I do have a gun! So I guess if they woke me up standing in my bedroom I would have shot someone because I was scared. However, from their history was more known about this couple than they are admitting or what’s in the news?
I looked up their arrest records and now have a better understanding why they may have not wanted to open the door.
Not Again said “it is time for Scott to quickly take away Morgan’s badge and gun and remove him from office due to his continued incorrigible threat to the public’s safety!”
I don’t think you like Sheriff Morgan. Like others on here you let that dislike color your opinions of the actions of his deputies.
In this case, the most significant issue is the lack of any kind of response to the deputies’ repeated calls to the residents to allow them entry. And before you ask, yes, as a matter of fact I WAS there!
Hey Kathy, only one ‘t’ in ‘pit’.
The Lowman days are back again in Escambia County deputies are out of control. It has already been okayed by Sheriff Morgan in his department’s other recent free wheel’n and gun’n down of a man in his driveway. This will be similar, and you’ll hear it right from the donkey’s mouth, “The dog lunged at the deputy and he was full of anxiety,” right? So it’s a GREEN LIGHT boys – guns free and shoot ‘em up!
Was this a truly an emergent circumstance to enter the home or was it a hasty end around to get in? Did someone actually see a “suspect” enter or was it assumed because there was a opportune bucket sitting there?
There needs to be a wholesale change-out in attitude at the sheriff’s office. Call the governor’s office today and complain; it is time for Scott to quickly take away Morgan’s badge and gun and remove him from office due to his continued incorrigible threat to the public’s safety! Scott has removed others from office for much less!
PEOPLE WHO RESIDE IN ESCAMBIA COUNTY FLORIDA: You better wake up and get a handle on your law enforcement! The last time I checked, we are not under martial law. No, I don’t live in Escambia County Florida, (thank goodness)and with all these unjustified shootings and entries onto private property it seems to be a time to unite and let your voice be heard, for It could be on your property next. “Officer Anxiety”, what a pathetic excuse.
A pit bull cane into my yard, attacked/injured my cat, tried to get me, then went next door and tried to attack a man and his wife two years ago. The man is in his early 30s, so saying pit bulls are only dangerous to the young, infirm or elderly is totally incorrect. They are dangerous animals and need to be controlled.
REGARDING:
“All dogs detect the smell and become alert to it. Add aggression and the dog attacks. Pit Bulldogs are only dangerous to the very young, older and weak. This doesn’t speak well for these deputies.”
and why would it be unreasonable to be nervous in a situation possibly involving armed people or unhappy animals?
David for clarity
REGARDING:
“For David Huie Green and others. Law enforcement Officers are required to act on behalf of the safety of citizens. Key word “required”. In certain circumstances retreat is not an option for them. Please also remember that the Officer on the street does not make the rules. They follow the guidelines set forth by their superiors. It was their DUTY to enter that residence to ensure the safety of persons inside.”
If you say so, then I believe you.
Still, for the less trusting folks a little more information and verification would be nice. The people whose home was entered were not “perps” and therefore considered to be automatically lying. They were citizens just like you and me. Their narrative differs from the official statement. Therefore, it would be nice to show what the dashcams showed and hear what the recordings of conversations have to say in the matter.
A little more information as to why it was “their DUTY to enter that residence to ensure the safety of persons inside” would be nice. Once they are inside, killing all the dogs and any people who threatened them would be reasonable because they have to protect themselves to protect us but nothing you have said explains why Sheriff Morgan’s policy requires them to enter the building in the interest of the safety of the citizens inside.
We can talk about “exigent circumstances” justifying the entry and I’m sure we all accept that, but “exigent” usually means “requiring action: needing immediate action” so it would be nice to give us ignorant people a little more information so we will understand and feel safe the next time it is required for our own safety.
David for being true to duty
As an ethologist, let me enlighten you. All dogs, regardless of breed, have a heightened sense of smell(1000 times that of humans). When any animal,humans included are scared, fearful or nervous, they emit an odor or scent(pheramones). All dogs detect the smell and become alert to it. Add aggression and the dog attacks. Pit Bulldogs are only dangerous to the very young, older and weak. This doesn’t speak well for these deputies.
Just when in this world will people respect law officers. Every day these male and female Officers put there life on the line . When a dog puts a Officer in danger the dog needs taken out its that simple people .
… I guess the dogs were just trying to “stand their ground” … after all it was THEIR house!
the dogs where doing what they were suppose to do: guard their property, even though,
Kathy, I think if I were encountering a pit bull and he was in the midst of biting my leg and the owners were not stopping him, I think he deserves to be SHOT. If the other came forward and the owner did not stop him, so be it. You need to protect yourself.
For David Huie Green and others. Law enforcement Officers are required to act on behalf of the safety of citizens. Key word “required”. In certain circumstances retreat is not an option for them. Please also remember that the Officer on the street does not make the rules. They follow the guidelines set forth by their superiors. It was their DUTY to enter that residence to ensure the safety of persons inside.
To the gentleman who asked about a warrant, they don’t need one when it comes to the Safety of the public. To the know it all who said the were bad shots. Both pit bulls were shot. The Officers hit their intended targets. This isn’t tv. Not everyone or everything dies when struck by a bullet. The fact that the Deputies rushed the dog to the vet shows they had good intention. Lastly, not all Deputies have tasers. In a situation like this they would’ve already had their pistols in hand. It may not have been reasonable to re holster and draw a taser.
Our local Law Enforcement does an excellent job. Unless you’ve been there it very difficult to grasp the decision making dynamic. Please don’t judge.
Bobby for a better educated public
Dogs know when their owners are scared and I’m pretty sure they could hear it in their voice that’s why they was standing their ground. These dogs are getting a bad rap I saw the one one the news and that dog is clearly a pet that’s part of the family. Do deputy’s still have tazers ?
@Those asking about “not having a warrant”. The way this reads is that two subjects committed and aggravated assault upon another person, one was arrested. Upon checking the perimeter of the house where the second subject was suppose to be they found an open window with a bucket under it with a foot print on the bucket as if someone entered the house by way of the window. They tried to get someone to the door with no results. They entered by way of the open window and found people inside. (why didn’t the people just go to the door?). The dog became aggressive and were shot. As to the need for a warrant, Fl. law gives a number of EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES where a warrant is not needed to enter a home or any building and this should fit this situation.
Always looking for a reason to KILL A PITT BULL. This is getting old, I can’t Believe The police are useing every excuess for KILLING A PITT. sad. really sad.
While its true i would be upset about my dogs, imagine how happy i would be to have them come in if i was being held against my will. Why would i be unwilling to answer what i bet was repeated commands of sheriffs office, come out, anyone here. STUPID!
More officers staying in their patrol cars and more citizens standing their ground might help some of this crap.
LEOS like many other public servants are much more likely to hear from a pissed off vocal minority than those who truly appreciate the jobs they do.
Hang in there officers you are appreciated by many for,what i imagine is often, a thankless job!!!!
Folks, law enforcement officers need a warrant or your permission to enter your home if they suspect a crime is being committed or a wanted criminal is hiding in there. Unless they have exigent circumstances present, which doesn’t sound like there was any in this case.
Thank you and great job to all Law Enforcement. Amazing how keyboard cowboys have all the answers in a situation they wouldn’t dare enter.
Something is missing, deputies went inside thinking the person was inside, why not get others to be on lookout & go talk to owners or try to before going in their house unannounced, unless they were in danger, the owners should have called the dogs back after they seen the officer, the dogs were doing what they were supposed to,but again after they seen officer, they should have called dogs back, this is maybe why the dogs got shot, that’s justified, officer should be thankful he/she didn’t get shot for intrusion , that was wrong, now I will say some of them act like they can do anything they want.
It is fast approaching the point where we are not going to be able to trust the police.This incident was totally uncalled for.The dogs were doing what dogs instinctively do!! Protecting their home!! Very Sad!!
Maybe they can come up with a legitimate reason to have broken into the home without a warrant or probable cause. (the fact that a crime “might” be happening does not justify breaking into YOUR home even though it IS true.)
*spot*
If I were in a uniform with a gun doing their job, I would reach for a tazer as “self preservation” instead of a gun to fend off a dog. I can’t help but wonder if it were another type dog (a breed of equal size) if it would have been shot too. That is someone’s pet that they have I’m sure to protect their home. Would you be okay with someone coming in shooting your pet because it was trying to protect you? A dog cannot see that it is an officer of the law coming at it’s owner just that it’s an attacker. Be it a pit bull or a Chihuahua.
Were any of you there? Do you know what happened in that house? What would have happened if they didn’t go in that house and there WAS the suspect in it, however due to their inaction the suspect kills all involved and then who is to blame. Wait until the investigation is completed then cast your stones.
Getting half the story is exactly that.
Folks keep in mind this was Sunday. The alleged fine American and friends of Fine American were just discussing the lesson they received earlier that morning at church and didn’t hear the officer request entry of 1968 singlewide . Lastly for whatever its worth… I don’t believe a bucket is compliant code to gain access to the dwelling.
I’m most concerned by obvious lack of weapon control by ECSD.
First a suspect is close enough for them to feel intimidated enough to fire 17 rounds at the individual when he allegedly lunged and only struck the individual once.
Now pit bulls are nipping at your leg or close enough for you too fear them and you still can’t dispatch the animals with your sidearm at close range.
These boys and girls obviously need a little tactical firearms training.
And yes I have been there, done that except my targets were returning fire, not holding keys and eating kibble…
I have a dog to protect my home and family members! Seem to me the dogs were doing what they should be doing protecting the home. Don’t shoot my dog, it is family!! If I am not home then don’t go in my yard or house because you may get more than you can chew.
Here we go again!! None of us know the whole story. We only jump to conclusions on part of a story. Sort of like watching only half of a movie and then assuming how it ends and judging if we liked it or not based on only what we saw. It is being investigated and the whole story will come out. So stop making assumptions and judging people on something you know nothing about. By the way, we all pay taxes. All government employees work for us, however we don’t sign their checks so they do not work directly for us. They work for the individual that signs the check to serve oue interests. Under the logic of “they work for me because I pay taxes” is nonsense. Each officer could say that he is self-employed because he pays taxes too, with that same logic. So everyone sit back, shut up and wait to see how this story plays out.
Just the beginning of martial law. They kill the dogs to try and make the owners attack them so they can shoot them. More to come!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
Could they have used their tazers on the dogs since the dogs were in their home??
I agree with Mark. The facts are The facts. Those officers acted on what they had at the time, with the TAX PAYERS in mind.. People need to realize that Leos make decisions quick with their life in mind as well
@Cantonment
So by your reasoning, the deputies should have not entered the home. OK, so they do not enter the home because there are pit bulls in there. In the meantime, the home owner is being raped or murdered.
Now what? You are going to complain that the deputy did NOT enter the home when they should have?
You can’t have it both ways. If the deputy had to enter the home, they have to protect themselves! If we’re so worried about our pets, then a deputy has every right NOT to enter your residence because there is a barking dog he might have to protect himself from.
So he doesn’t enter and YOU do WHAT? Sue the city for not protecting you!
Oh and the police do not work DIRECTLY for you! So many of you think that because you pay taxes, you OWN the police department.
Like Spot said, if you can do a better job, than DO IT. If not, shut up and let them do their jobs, and stop complaining.
Aggravated assault? Was there a warrant? Got to love these articles how they leave out important details that justify their going into a house. If there was no assault going on at the moment why couldn’t they get someone out to handle the dogs as i’m sure they knew they were there. Seems like something is missing here. Can’t really blame dogs for being protective of strangers entering a house without being welcomed in.
Should never have to be begging for help ..that’s their job to protect and serve,they work for us…some of them need reminding of that
“Disgusted”
It is called self preservation, feel free to put on a uniform and gun anytime and do the job.
Okay these pit bull things are going to far, they were in THEIR home, the police came in THROUGH A WINDOW! You’ve gotta be kidding me. Deputy should not have shot the dogs, they were protecting their owners, that’s what ALL dogs do, but because its a pit bull its suddenly news worthy. So sad.
Everyone wants to always blame the Sheriffs Department. The same people complaining will be the ones begging for help one day. Get a Life and lay off the ECSD. If you dont like the way they operate then go to school and get a job with them and change stuff, if you can even pass the school and get the job.
Guess this was “deputy anxiety” too…or whatever they’re calling it.