A Merryville dog owner sought revenge by fatally shooting a dog after it allegedly attacked his dog last week. So, we asked Legal Analyst Franz Borghardt is it legal to shoot another dog in another person’s yard if it attacked yours?
“It’s probably aggravated cruelty to an animal which carries a mandatory minimum of one year in prison. It’s probably an unauthorized entry of a dwelling depending on where and when. It’s definitely trespass to property.”
Borghardt says the owner of the labrador (number one) saw the man enter her backyard before gunfire rang out. He says the state’s statue of cruelty to animals prohibits a person from injuring any animal belonging to another person.
“We love marvel movies. We don’t like people acting like marvel heroes on their own. His responsibility would have been to call the police and report the incident and then let them deal with secondary dog who may or may not have attacked dog number one.”
Boghardt says if the owner felt he had to rescue his dog from the larbrador, he should have taken a different approach to handle the situation. The owner of the labrador can seek restitution or criminal charges.
“The damages caused by dog number two to dog number one can be sought in criminal or civil court.”
Authorities are conducting a criminal investigation into the shooting of the Labrador.
