Walter In Denver

Don't Shoot the Pooch

If you've followed Radley Balko's investigations into police tactics related to drug raids you may remember some of the 'cops shoot dog' stories he's mentioned. Now he's worked it into a full length post at Reason. Here's a bit:

In the course of researching paramilitary drug raids, I’ve found some pretty disturbing stuff. There was a case where a SWAT officer stepped on a baby’s head while looking for drugs in a drop ceiling. There was one where an 11-year-old boy was shot at point-blank range. Police have broken down doors, screamed obscenities, and held innocent people at gunpoint only to discover that what they thought were marijuana plants were really sunflowers, hibiscus, ragweed, tomatoes, or elderberry bushes. (It’s happened with all five.)

Yet among hundreds of botched raids, the ones that get me most worked up are the ones where the SWAT officers shoot and kill the family dog.

I suppose this is a good time to mention longtime In Denver Malamute Edgar passed away due to a sudden illness last week. We are now dogless for the first time in a decade.