Kalamazoo officer attacked by pit bull: Dog was 'staring directly at me, as if he acquired his target'

MICHIGAN -- A Kalamazoo Public Safety officer who shot and killed a pit bull in the Edison neighborhood was acting in self defense, according to a police report from the incident.

Witnesses reported that Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety Officer Ryan Preston appeared to be trying to defend himself May 8 when he shot "Boss," a 70-pound red nose pit bull, according to the police report obtained by the Kalamazoo Gazette through the Michigan Freedom of Information Act.

Nichole Perry, 34, the owner of the pit bull, has pleaded not guilty to a charge of harboring a vicious dog. Perry has a pre-trial hearing set for June 17 in front of Judge Richard Santoni for the criminal charge, which carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and a $500 fine.

On the day of the incident, Preston was investigating a fight in the Edison neighborhood, knocking on doors of potential witnesses, according to the police report. When he arrived at Perry's house in the 1600 block of Lay Boulevard, a man named Dillon Burgett came to the side door.

Burgett refused to open the door and told the officer to leave, according to the report. As Preston was leaving, he went to check the address at the front of the house. As he did that, Burgett opened the front door and the pit bull ran out of the house.

"The pit bull was staring directly at me, as if he acquired his target," Preston wrote in the report.

Preston wrote that he began to backpedal in order to distance himself from the dog, and the pit bull charged at him. The dog chased the officer into the roadway, jumping on the officer, biting him on the right leg. As the dog was jumping on him, Preston shot three rounds at the dog, the report said.

Dash cam video from police cruisers didn't capture the incident, but Preston's microphone recorded audio. Shortly after Preston finishes talking to Burgett, the dog can be heard growling and barking, followed by shouting and then three gun shots.

Preston can then be heard saying, "It bit me twice on my knee. I'm leaking blood."

Investigators interviewed seven witnesses of the shooting, and all of them said the officer appeared to be acting in self defense, according to the police report.

Burgett and Perry were upset and hostile with officers after the shooting, according to the report and recordings. Perry said her dog was not vicious and said Boss had never attacked anyone before.

"You guys killed him," Perry said while crying. "I don't believe it. He's never bit anybody."

Burgett told police that the dog charged at Preston because the officer was running away, according to the report.

Three complaints had been made against the dog in the past, including a loose dog report on March 12. Perry pleaded guilty to a charge of dog at large earlier this month, stemming from the March 12 incident.

(The Kalamazoo Gazette - June 5, 2014)

Earlier:

• Officer recording of pit bull shooting released