NEW YORK -- A pit bull that was shot in 2014 by an Erie County Sheriff’s deputy during a search in Sardinia is back in custody after killing a dog, authorities said.
Lady, a 67-pound brindle pit bull, attacked a smaller dog early Sunday on Pratham Road, said Capt. Greg Savage of the Erie County Sheriff’s Office.
The mauling was reported by Dawn Sager, a Pratham Road resident who told deputies she walked her dogs outside between 5:30 and 5:45 a.m. on Sunday.
The victim dog, a 16-pound Maltese mix named Jasper, would have turned 4 next summer, said Sager, who was watching Jasper for her daughter.
“I was getting ready for work and I put the two dogs out – my cockapoo and Jasper,” said Sager, a 29-year resident of Pratham. “I heard my dog growl and yip, and I ran outside and I saw what appeared to be a pit bull running away. Jasper was a mud ball and bleeding badly. I yelled at another pit bull who was standing over Jasper.”
“He was beat up so bad,” said Sager. “He suffered extensive internal injuries and they wanted to amputate his leg. He was euthanized” on Sunday night.
Lady, owned by Megan Shimburski of Pratham Road, was found about 6 miles from home on Monday.
Duane Degoiler, Sardinia dog warden, retrieved Lady, which was identified by Sager as the dog she saw standing over Jasper. It was not Lady’s first brush with the law.
Lady was ruled a “dangerous dog” by Sardinia Town Justice Gene R. Heintz in the summer of 2014 after being shot by detectives who were searching the area around the Shimburski house for a man wanted in a string of burglaries.
The detectives in court documents claimed at the time that they shot Lady in self-defense because the dog was barking and charging at them.
“My heart was literally in my throat,” testified Detective Greg McCarthy, the detective who shot Lady. McCarthy said he fired once as he backpedaled in Shimburski’s yard, striking the charging dog, which was about to lunge.
The “dangerous dog” ruling came along with several restrictions including that Lady be muzzled and leashed when in public.
In addition, the court ordered dog warning signs posted at the Shimburski house.
Shimburski attorney Matt Albert appealed the ruling, which was recently overturned on a procedural error by Erie County Court Judge Thomas P. Franczyk.
Lady was impounded Thursday and is the subject of another “dangerous dog” hearing at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in Sardinia Town Hall.
(Buffalo News - Dec 19, 2015)
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