TENNESSEE -- A Knox County sheriff's officer this morning twice shot at a pit bull dog when it charged him in a Northeast Knox County yard, a spokeswoman said.
Gordon Browning, a 16-year veteran warrants officer for the Knox County Sheriff's Office, was serving an eviction notice when the incident occurred, according to KCSO spokeswoman Martha Dooley.
Browning was not injured during the 9:45 a.m. incident in the 2100 block of Ellistown Road near the intersection with Rutledge Pike.
Dooley said Browning planned to post a detainer warrant on the front door of the home when he noted a sleeping pit bull dog under some covers. Browning opted to post the detainer warrant on a side door.
As Browning began posting the notice, the pit bull came at him, Dooley said.
"It charged him and he had no choice but to shoot it when it got within three feet of him," she said.
"He fired two rounds."
The dog sustained wounds to a paw and its muzzle, Dooley said. The dog was taken to the Young Williams Animal Center for treatment.
"It doesn't look like they're going to put the dog down," she said.
The dog's owner was not at home at the time of the incident. Dooley said the dog's owner will retrieve the animal from the animal shelter.
(Knoxville News Sentinel - Sept 20, 2011)
