[RP TownTalk] Citizen Complaint of Riverdale Police Animal Abuse

[Anne Marie Willis]

To:  Neighbors of Riverdale and friends of Animals

Citizen Complaint of  Riverdale Police Animal Abuse

Today, Monday, May 12th, 2008 I witnessed the cruel
and excessive force in the shooting and killing of a
dog by the Riverdale Park Police Department.

At about 3:30 p.m. I came out of my house at 5316
Taylor Road to leave for work. Suddenly, I heard
police sirens and saw un-marked cars speeding south on
Taylor Road towards Edmonston. Then I heard gun shots.
I walked down to the end of my driveway to see what
was going on. I saw a light brown dog running back up
Taylor Road. Then I saw an un-marked car turn around
and head back up Taylor Road. By that time, I figured
out that they must have been looking for the dog. The
dog then reappeared and ran over to my neighbors’ yard
and hid behind one of their cars, looking at my front
yard through the chain-link fence. It looked scared. I
went around to open my front gate in hopes that the
dog would come in my yard, so they could catch the
dog. I have done this many times before for other
wandering dogs. Once I contain the dog, I check for
tags and/or call Animal Control to say that I have
found a dog. This scenario did NOT happen.

As I opened my front gate the officers in the
un-marked cars yelled at me to get back in my house
“NOW”. I walked back to my car and then I saw three
marked Riverdale police cars pull up. They jumped out
with guns drawn, running toward my neighbors’ yard
where the dog was hiding. Two officers had automatic
weapons. I got into my car but since my driveway was
blocked by a police car, I had to be in close ear shot
the following violence. After closing my eyes, and
praying that they not shoot the dog, I heard MANY
ROUNDS OF GUN FIRE. My heart sank. All those police
and guns for one dog. Very excessive violence. 

I was finally able to get out of my driveway and
called my neighbor on my way to work. I had seen her
speaking to the police. She said that the police were
in her yard, putting the dog in a bag. The police had
told her that the dog had bitten someone up the
street. She said that this was all the information
they provided. 

This incident terrorized me and my neighbors, and the
following questions haunt me: Were the Riverdale Park
Police 100% sure that the dog really bit someone or
was it just play nipping? Was gunfire in our
residential neighborhood absolutely necessary? Could a
tranquilizer gun have been used? Should this situation
have been calmly and professionally handled by Prince
George’s County Animal Control? Did the police
officers act ethically, with minimum required force?
Could the police have caught the dog, confirmed the
story, and spoken to its owner? Did the dog only
understand Spanish? This incident reeks of ANIMAL
ABUSE, CRUELITY, AND EXCESSIVE POLICE VIOLENCE!!! It
created unnecessary danger to the residents of Taylor
Road with speeding cars and gunfire.

This incident scared me, seeing the recklessness of
our police department. I feel less safe in my own
neighborhood. I am deeply concerned for animal welfare
in the neighborhood and for my own dogs’ safety. I
expect a thorough, unbiased investigation and full
public disclosure to help restore my peace of mind.

Anne Marie Willis
5316 Taylor Road
Riverdale, MD 20737

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