Family mourns bulldog shot by police
Spot, the bulldog shot by police
(CNS): A West Bay family caught up in a gun raid are mourning the loss of their pet, ‘Spot’ (which they say was a bulldog and not, as claimed by the police, a pit bull), after officers shot and mortally wounded the animal last week. The police said they have referred the incident to the Office of the Ombudsman, but the family is also filing a complaint with the office over the events that left Spot dead. They have also complained that requests for the dog’s body to be returned to them have been ignored. Al Bodden, the owner of the dog, who said he was not arrested during the raid, submitted a document to CNS outlining his concerns about the death of his pet.
Bodden said that his dog has never bitten or even been aggressive to anyone and police have attended the premises in the past without incident. Describing the frightening early morning raid, in which a 92-year-old relative was also detained, he described how the firearms officers arrived in the dark, dressed in dark clothes in full masks, and banged on the door of his landlady’s apartment, waking everyone without identifying themselves, before they came banging on his door.
Bodden said he had no idea who the men were or why they were there but was ordered onto his knees; five officers then dragged him to the roadside. As that was happening, he said, he heard Spot, who was standing with his sister at the time, bark just once. Then he heard a loud bang, and as he looked over he saw the animal had been shot. Bodden also noted that Spot was very near to his sister when the officer fired at the dog, putting her life in danger as well.
In his complaint document, Bodden said he was in fear for his life when the police came, describing them as being dressed in dark fatigues wearing full face masks and presenting a terrifying presence, especially to his elderly relative, as they pointed their weapons at her as well. Bodden believes that the police did not conduct themselves in accordance with the law and failed to explain why they were there. He said that while he believes it is important for the police to carry out their work, it should be done lawfully.
He questioned why the police, who knew there was a dog on those premises, were not prepared to deal with the situation without having to shoot the animal, as he denied that Spot had acted aggressively.
During the operation police seized a loaded pistol and two spear guns. The 92-year-old woman and 54-year-old man who were arrested at the scene have both since been bailed.
While pit bulls are on the list of prohibited dog breeds in the Cayman Islands, bulldogs are not.
all for one gun…….
The decent law-abiding citizens are not mourning the death of this beast.
That is not just a bulldog. Also, the treatment of domestic animals, dogs & cats, on the island is disgusting. Never seen the likes of it. Outdoors, wandering around, no collars, chasing anyone they see. But if you mention or complain to these so called ‘animal lovers’ you get an obscene rant in response! Most do no deserve the privilege of owning any amimal.
Criminally cultured will always whine when police do their thing. Its expected. The raid was successful. Good for the police. Sorry for the dog and any innocent persons traumatized by the war on crime.
Although difficult to positively identify the exact breed of the dog in the picture, one could reasonably surmise by its size and build that this animal was a cross bred bulldog/mastiff or pit bull.
So enough of the nonsensical bleeding heart whining about a dog that wouldn’t hurt a fly. This dog was bred to guard and possibly attack, it should never have been allowed on island in the first place.
I find it hard to believe that even if the officers weren’t immediately identifiable in the dark, they soon made themselves known when confronting the occupants. Clearly the darkness and dark clothing are for their protection, why would they present themselves as a readily available target by wearing light clothes on a firearms raid? Stupid words said by stupid people who have never put their lives on the line or have any understanding of tactical awareness.
Mr. Bodden here’s what I have to say to you.. SPEAK WITH A LAWYER!!! A GOOD ONE!!!
Pay a lawyer and loose a case in court. Good advice.
Pay a tutor and learn that “lose” and “loose” have two different meanings…..
Since we’re on the topic of which group of dogs bred are actually considered aggressive and dangerous, I can’t help but wonder which group of humans should be considered more aggressive and dangerous than others since it would appear the behavior is linked hereditary according to the claims made. We should probably make them illegal in this country too and not just our four legged “aggressive” friends.
Civilised people who care for others in society mourn the fact that there are people which choose to keep such devil dogs. When children are maimed and killled by them, owners always say that up to that point the vicious powerful trained killer was a wonderful pet. It was not. It was a human life ruined waiting to happen.
12:01 am , Is that a new breed of dogs , devil dogs. They must be very expensive to buy . Do they have horns too .
Babylon boops!
Well, I’m sorry for the dog. It was bad luck he lived in a criminal house. Keep up the pressure RCIP!
Olde English Bulldogs have been cross-bred with bull mastiffs, pit bulls, and American bulldogs to help keep them healthier and avoid some of the complications common amongst regular English Bulldogs. Simple blood test will tell if the dog was cross-bred. All cross-breds are subject to destruction.
Anonymous 5:22 pm , well then if all cross-breds are subject to destruction, then that wouldn’t leave many pet dogs in Cayman. Was that Bush and McLaughlin made that Law ? Sounds like .
All dogs cross-bred from those on the prohibited list are subject to destruction. Clearly this doesn’t happen in practice, but it is the law.
10:03 pm , is that particular dog that was killed , on the prohibited list ?
I think there’s a lot wrong here including the law .
I mean because they don’t have any respect for animals life , to have made an intelligent animals law .
Why take innocent life? Because mans law??
Yes. I agree. Why destroy viruses, bacteria, etc?
To be fair, it’s debatable as to whether viruses actually fit the definition of “life”
Racism in full force today!
I have too been in a similar situation not where any animal was shot but where police came and raided dressed with baliclavas and dark attire not specifying that they’re were the police and now suffer anxiety because of the trama caused by their “PROFESSIONAL TRAINING”
But we asked fot aggressive policing to go after guns and criminals. Now that we got it. What’s the problem!!
The Premier said he was going to bring the gun crime down , so be happy he is doing it for you .
I am confused why the RCIPS are quick to shoot an animal, who can only bite; but they literally are afraid to shoot the criminals who will shoot and fight them on a whim!
Dumbass. Drug gangs and gun gangs or dead dogs. I’ll take the later.
Then don’t keep loaded firearms and spearguns on the premises. Your actions have consequences, live with it.
This place seems overrun with very activist police and it will only take a huge, multi-million dollar payout to make the government stop behaving like this.
The Cayman Islands has a decent legal system because its ultimate court is the Privy Council and for the moment you may apply to ECHR I believe. I would urge you to seek local counsel to see what type of compensation you could sue for. I believe there are other local agencies like the Ombudsman who can give you advice. Good luck and do not be afraid to take action.
Bless. Don’t hang out with loser criminals then.
And a can of worms has just been opened. I am sure they reported it as a pit bull to justify their actions. How do you expect to show up in black unidentified clothing and expect people or even better, a dog to not try to protect their territory? These officers watch too much tv. They are civil servant and should always wear clothing that will identify them as such, from their respective civil service department. Why are their faces covered? Are they thugs committing robbery or police officers upholding the law? Some will say to hide their identity.
My answer to that is, we live on a very small island, and everyone knows or can at least find out who you are, where you live, and where you work. My point is, the police should not be running into anyone’s yard with black masks and full black clothing. What is going to eventually happen is that they will show up at the wrong house and will be really surprised by a loud bang.
Maybe the recent spate of police officers cars being damaged and death threats sprayed on walls means that they feel they do need to cover their faces – your comment about it being a small island and being table to find out where people live doesn’t exactly fill me with confidenc that police officers can do their job without concern. And as for unidentified – give me a break. I have never seen an armed support officer who didn’t have the words police on their fatigues, and you would like us to believe that they didn’t identify themselves as police – why wouldn’t they, not as if they were trying a covert entry. Only word on that is from the people who were the subject of the raid, who just might be a tad biased.
Maybe you should read the law that specifies how police should identify them selves. Then you would understand why coming to a private premises in an ambush style is unacceptable. If they do not follow the laws they are no better than the people they are going after. if allow the police to break or bend the law for their convenience then what happens then?
Taken from the Police Law (2017 Revision)
“11. An identity card in the form prescribed in Schedule 1 signed by the
Commissioner or a senior officer authorised by the Commissioner in that behalf,
shall be issued to every police officer and shall be evidence of that police
officer’s appointment.”
So, if said card serves as evidence of the officer’s appointment, a person dressed in black clothes and face masked shouting “POLICE” means diddly squat! It could be robbers fronting as police.
Move like a thief, get treated like one, and the RCIPS wonders why they dont have the community’s respect?
Think you will find they have ‘Police’ badges on their kit.
You can forge a badge easily. Not ample identification.
That was an amazing dog if Mr Bodden is to be believed. A bulldog is not a poodle yet when confronted with all these strange men it was not aggressive and only barked once?.
…called training…something some folks dont have
6.09am Judging by the thousands of local dogs that bark all day long without even seeing a stranger, I doubt if any dog here has had “training”.
And dogs don’t always continually bark when charging to attack.
The media (CNS) couldn’t wait to say “pitbull” huh. Any dog would have done what this bulldog did, it was protecting it’s territory. Also, is the dog expected to defferentiate between a police man and a milk man? I hope all dog maulings and bites make your headlines in the future and not just pitbulls. I myself have been bitten twice, and the culprits were lap dogs.
Was the gentleman arrested or not? The second to last paragraph contradicts the first paragraph. Thanks.
CNS: The man arrested was not Al Bodden.
If you’re that scared of a little bulldog then you should probably return your gun and reconsider your career choice…
Similarly, if you are living in a house that gets regular visits from the police, because you have guns, and other illegal stuff going on…better get used to a measured response.
You know why they are called bull dogs right? Because they were bred to attack bulls – hence the jaw and the musculature. Look at the photo.
In that photo, it looks nothing like a pure-bred bulldog (wrong muscle definition, wrong ear-shape etc). Looks more like a pitbull cross (possibly with bulldog, but hard to say from one poor-quality photo). And they were bred for bull-baiting, not hunting – I mean, why would you want to hunt a domestic animal? The winning dog would grab a bull’s nose ring and drag it’s head down to control it. As a result they were bred to be extremely aggressive and powerful. It was only after bull-baiting was banned in the 1830s that they started to be bred as domestic pets.
(a) The Police had been called to the address before and knew in advance to send the Armed Support Unit…as well they did, because:
(b) They recovered a loaded snub-nosed 0.38 Special, a weapon that hasn’t passed the years sitting quietly in a velvet case…very likely to have featured in many serious crimes over a half-century
(c) Two illegal spearguns
* AND *
(d) If you don’t remember being arrested, you are unlikely to be deemed a reliable witness to anything.
Spot = 0
RCIPS = 3
So its mans flawed law over LIFE for you then…must be a criminal lawyer…
Police can’t tell the difference between a pit and a bulldog? Eek
They can usually tell when it’s raining though, so don’t worry. LOL
good old police. they have been incidences where they would show up with no warrant and burst in because “the are the police” but the fools forgot that the warrant is to help justify anything found or taken from what ever premises they searched. Police want to search everything with out a warrant these days. JUST doing Police work? And what will become of this? Nothing, the law has been written in pencil, and erased and re-written so much times to protect the police. SO THE POLICE CAN NOT DO ANY WRONG!?? I think that needs to be changed and officers who do not obey the law, or preform their duties according to law. be punished as any civil servant would. Why cant the police do no wrong???????????????
Be quiet until you know what you are talking about. They don’t search unless they have good reason and a raid is something that is carried out after many weeks or months of surveillance. It’s not just something they decide to do on a slow night. Everyone complains when the police don’t do something but when they do, they get screwed for that, too. Shut up, for God’s sake. Your words are ignorant and your argument redundant, and stale.
Anonymousir @2.31pm, “Incidences” is not the word, it is incidents. You must expect the police to bring an element of surprise when searching for guns in a high crime area, and a daylight raid would not have resulted in recovery of a gun. While it is sad the dog was a causality in this raid, the police have a short window to make a decision about an aggressive dog. If this was an American bulldog, while he may have been very calm up to this point in his life, this commotion would have alarmed him, as he is a very confident dog. As much as this disturbs both you and I, the police should be given the benefit of the doubt in this case.
Good on you Mr. Bodden for handling this the responsible way. If the statement is true and somebody had unreasonably shot my dog in such a cowardly way I don’t think I would have exercised as much restraint.
These officers need training to handle dog situations on raids considering how frequently this is occurring and the population of dog owners on this island. Needlessly putting dog and human lives at risk. That’s probably asking too much though considering the level of incompetence and laziness…
what about police having to visit said location over and over
Over and over?
Sounds like incompetance to us….you have sense?
Or repeated criminal activity. Resulting in repeated visits. Do you have ANY sense?
Us?
What would have been a serious issue for the police is if they had accidentally shot his sister….that would have been a nightmare….for us all!!!!!
I would like to think that if children are present when police are conducting a raid, that the officers would have a process in place to remove these minors from the premises, before any further action can be taken.
Just a thought….
If he came here looking for sympathy, he came to the wrong place.
Right?? They were being raided FOR A REASON and apparently those reasons were not unfounded. And now they are grasping for a reason to try to take the spotlight off that reality and turn it around on the police. Typical. Clean up your shit, stop dealing drugs and engaging in illegal activity and there will be no police there shooting your dogs. Period.
All I can say is that his story isn’t like mine would’ve been , if the Police had come to raid my house and shot my dog . They would have found nothing but shot my dog inside the front door . There would be an investigation but not by the Ombudsman or the Police . This is why my dog would always protect me , so in this case I have to protect him . I don’t put him in danger , and he protects me , that’s true love . RIP for the dog , but carma for him .