The first was taken by a bystander's cell phone. The second video wasn't seen until after the first one hit the Internet and became such a sensation; I saw it on The Huffington Post, which said the police department had sent it to them *after* they reported on the first one. Now, this is all my opinion, but:
1. Why is there a gap in the second video? The scene from where the dog owner was standing on the sidewalk watching was shown but from a different angle, so it's not like it was too long to be used or anything; why was it clipped, and why in that particular place?
2. The charge they wanted to arrest him for (interference with officers for his loud music) was not serious enough to worry about a flight risk, after all he *had* put his dog in the car and walked back to them *and* quietly turned around and let them handcuff him, so why didn't they let him put the dog back in the car , roll the windows up, and call someone to come get him?
3. Whose voice is that that can be heard saying "Shoot him, shoot him!" at almost the same time that you can hear the owner begging "Don't shoot my dog, don't shoot my dog!"?
4. Finally, the officer can be seen hesitantly extending his left arm with his hand in a fist. The dog jumps up (IMO playfully) and the man immediately backs up and shoots him 4 times. Now, I'm not an animal expert but if the dog was coming out of the car to attack someone would he just trot over and stand around, occasionally sniffing the ground? IMO he would have come out of that car like a shot, and jumped on anything that wasn't his owner. Even if he *didn't* come out of the car to attack, when a dog is about to attack there are signs! Hackles raise, teeth are bared, tail stiffens (and sometimes the back legs as well) the animal growls; any or all of these (and others I'm sure I'm not aware of) happen so that you know an attack is imminent. Was I the only one who didn't see any of that? Did anyone else see, as I did, a big, playful dog reacting more to the hand being stretched out toward him than anything else, and thought it meant play time?
IMO yes, police officers need training, but not just protocol on how many times to shoot the dog. Perhaps they should learn to identify when a dog is being aggressive and when he isn't. Not all big dogs, even Rottweilers, are mean and vicious, and *that's* what officers need to be trained in. They should also be taught to make better decisions when it comes to animals and their owners, such as telling/warning the owner to make sure the animal is restrained, and checking/watching to make sure the order is complied with. There are many more I'm sure, but I think that would make a great start.
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