Met Police Officers Cleared After Shooting Two Dogs in East London
The Independent Office for Police Conduct clears officers involved in the shooting of two dogs during a tense incident in East London
East London, UK, Met Police, Dogs, Shooting, Investigation
East London: So, there was this pretty intense situation where police shot two dogs. The Independent Office for Police Conduct looked into it and decided the officers did nothing wrong.
People were really upset about it, especially after videos of the incident went viral. The footage showed a homeless guy getting tasered while his dogs were shot. It stirred up quite a bit of controversy online.
But the IOPC found that the officers acted appropriately. They said there was no evidence of any misconduct or criminal behavior. So, they’re in the clear.
This all started when police got called about a woman and her dog being attacked by two Cane Corsos. The incident happened on Commercial Road back in May 2023, and both the woman and her dog were hurt.
Louie Turnbull, the owner of the dogs, was tracked down by the police. He didn’t want to give up his dogs, which were acting all agitated. The situation escalated, and one dog broke free, leading to the officers shooting it.
After that, the second dog was also shot when it got loose from a police handler. Turns out, Mr. Turnbull had a history with dog ownership and was banned from having dogs for 20 years.
He ended up with a suspended prison sentence after pleading guilty to having a dog that was dangerously out of control. He had a similar issue earlier that year when his dogs attacked another dog.
After people complained about how the police handled things, the Met referred the case to the IOPC. They investigated and found that the officers were just trying to keep everyone safe.
Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway said the officers faced a tough situation and tried hard to get the owner to hand over the dogs. They only took action when they had no other choice.
He acknowledged that the videos shared online caused a lot of distress, but emphasized that the police were just trying to protect everyone involved, including the dogs.
It’s a tough call, and no one wants to see animals get hurt, but the police had to act in the moment. If you’ve got any thoughts on this, feel free to reach out!