DETROIT – A Detroit family’s dog is recovering after being shot Friday night by a Wayne State University Police officer.
The dog was shot outside the family’s apartment near Frederick Street and Beaubien Boulevard.
A university spokesperson said it’s not something they take lightly, but the dog was charging at the officer. The incident is under review by the department.
The dog, a 10-year-old goldendoodle named Ace, is also an emotional support dog.
“Got him as a puppy; he’s very gentle, very healing and instinctive,” said Robin Gamble who got the dog for her son.
She said he became an official emotional support dog in 2017.
“This place we’re living at now, we couldn’t have a dog unless we had the proper paperwork,” Gamble said.
Gamble and her 18-year-old son Justin Fuller said Ace isn’t aggressive and they don’t understand why this officer would shoot him.
Fuller said around 9:30 p.m. on Friday when he took Ace out for a quick bathroom break in the rain, four Wayne State Police patrol cars were outside of their neighbor’s front door.
“We walk over to this abandoned house behind us and by the time he gets about halfway there, he notices the cops and he trots over there curiously to see what they’re up to, he’s being a dog,” Fuller said. “The officer looked at me, looked back at the dog, and shot the dog. He didn’t give me any warning, he didn’t say ‘come get your dog.’”
“He was shot in his mouth, it went through his jaw and then the bullet came out, so he has some stitches and some tissue damage,” Gamble said.
A Wayne State University spokesperson confirms the shooting and said officers were initially responding to a domestic disturbance call that turned into a welfare check.
The spokesperson also said the dog was not on a leash, charged at the officer, and with the limited space in front of the door, the officer had nowhere to go and felt they were in danger.
It’s policy that whenever an officer fires a shot, the department does a complete review of the incident.
Gamble agreed that Ace wasn’t on a leash, but argues that doesn’t justify shooting him.
“There’s dogs that can be off of a leash and we’re steps from the front door,” Gamble said.
She tells us that she plans to file a complaint with the police.