Family upset after dog shot by officer

Police said dog was loose; self defense on officer's part

By Dustin Hughes and Jaclyn Cosgrove

A woman whose dog was shot - non-fatally - by a Sand Springs police officer described her animal as a beloved pet. Police, meanwhile say the dog was loose and charged at the officer, leaving him with no choice but to fire in self defense.

The shooting is currently under investigation by police administrators, said Assistant Police Chief Mike Carter.

The owner of the dog, Kimberlee Hughes, does not deny that her dog ‘Taz’ was loose.

A jogger called police Aug. 17 to report that the dog followed her and her baby while she turned from 113th W. Ave. onto 44th Street, reports show. She said the dog followed her for a while, then stopped. She told police she could see several children playing and decided to call police.

Lt. John Tillman said in his report that he was dispatched about 8:15 p.m. that day to investigate a report of a loose, aggressive dog described as a black and white pit bull.

Hughes said Taz is part pit bull, part chocolate lab and part boxer.

In his report, Tillman said he found the dog in the driveway and was trying to find a way around it when it began barking, growling, and walking toward him. Tillman said Hughes was in her driveway as he got out, and he told her she needed to secure her dog. As he was walking back, Tillman said the dog “began a full running charge towards him barking and growling.”

Tillman wrote that the dog almost struck him when he fired two rounds from his pistol. One missed, one hit the dog.

Hughes said she heard the gunshots but did not see what happened.


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