The internal investigation by Inkster police into the shooting of dog by an officer is ongoing, according to an official statement from the department.
A 4-year-old mastiff, owned by Inkster resident Brad Brock, was shot and killed by an Inkster officer earlier this month. According to Brock, the dog was shot as it approached the officer, attempting, Brock said, to greet him.
Brock said the incident occurred after he made a 911 call to the police to report an altercation at a nearby gas station on Michigan Avenue. His dog, Moose, was not on a leash at the time and was approaching Brock when the officer fired four times, striking the animal.
“They took my best friend from me. Four times they shot him. Everything just happened so fast,” Brock said. He claims the dog walked past another person at the scene and was “hyper and happy and then he walked next to me and they (the police officer) shot him.”
Inkster police said that the officer feared for his life when the large dog walked toward him. The officer's body camera had stopped working prior to the incident, according to police officials. Brock insisted that the dog was gentle and posed no threat. “Even after he was shot he was still wagging his tail. He was still wagging his tail. He was just such a loving dog. He was just such a loving boy,” Brock said.
Brock rushed Moose to a veterinary clinic where the dog was pronounced dead. Brock said he is now in debt for the treatment provided to his dog. “I've got bills I've got to pay. I lost out on work. I lost my best friend. I lost something that helps me through life. The thing that helps me get through life,” Brock said. Brock said the dog helped him cope with the loss of his leg as the result of a motorcycle accident. “He's been with me every step of the way since my accident. And now I don't have that. They took that from me,” Brock said.
“The members of the Inkster Police Department are without question saddened by the loss of anyone's pet, and we send our sympathy to the owner, however, it is incumbent of pet owners to be responsible with their animals. In this instance, you have a pet owner who had a dog near the main thoroughfare, with high numbers of both vehicular and pedestrian traffic, without a leash. And without sufficient control of the animal. Again, this investigation is ongoing.”
Brock said he intends to contact a lawyer about filing suit against the department.
