Marty
10-24-2005, 10:29 PM
Jersey City, NJ A Jersey City police officer reportedly threatened to shoot a 7-month-old pit bull puppy for not being on a leash - then came back with a dozen cops after the dog's owner filed a complaint.
Carlos Echevarria, 35, admitted his puppy was unleashed - for about two seconds, when she ran from his truck and then through the gate of his fenced-in property on Prospect Street about 3 p.m. Thursday.
Echevarria said he'd parked in front of his Prospect Street home and let the pit bull, Gracie, out of the car and through the gate of his 4-foot fence. The dog bounded up the steps onto the front stoop and waited for Echevarria, with her tail wagging and nose pressed against the front door, as he fished out his house keys.
At that point, Echevarria said, Jersey City Police Officer Juan Berrios walked over and delivered his threat.
"He said, 'You better put that dog on a leash or I'll shoot it,'" recalled Echevarria as Gracie, a rambunctious, friendly blue-nosed American pit bull, played at his feet.
"I said, 'Excuse me?' and he repeated it three times, 'I'm going to shoot your dog,'" Echevarria said. "I felt like he was threatening to shoot one of my own kids."
Echevarria said Gracie stayed on the stoop as he spoke to the officer, who was working a traffic detail on Prospect Street during road work.
"I know she is a pit bull but she did not growl or bark at him," he said. "All she would do is lick you to death. Kids come to my door and ask if they can play with her all the time."
Echevarria said he asked Berrios for his badge number and the cop reportedly replied: "1-2-3-4."
Berrios could not be reached for comment yesterday.
After the exchange, Echevarria said he went to the North Precinct and filed a complaint. When he got home, he said, "my house was surrounded by 12 cops."
He said one of the officers then handed him two tickets - with fines totaling $112 - one for failure to leash the dog and another for not showing proper canine identification and registration.
He said he was was never asked for the dog's registration, or he would have provided it. The dog is registered, according to Jersey City Animal Control Officer Joe Frank.
A police spokesman, Sgt. Edgar Martinez, said he would not comment specifically on Echevarria's complaint, but said it is not police policy to threaten to shoot unleashed dogs.
"Since he filed a complaint, we now cannot comment on an ongoing investigation," he said.
Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio said that based on Echevarria's story, he did not break any laws.
"Dogs don't have to be leashed on private property. Leash laws are aimed for public property only," DeFazio said.
Neighbors support Echevarria's defense of Gracie's demeanor.
"She's a very excitable dog but I like her, everybody says she's great," one neighbor said. "She really listens to him, too. I don't think if I approached her she would bite me, just jump up and down."
http://www.nj.com/news/jjournal/index.ssf?/base/news-0/113014509877480.xml&coll=3&thispage=1
Carlos Echevarria, 35, admitted his puppy was unleashed - for about two seconds, when she ran from his truck and then through the gate of his fenced-in property on Prospect Street about 3 p.m. Thursday.
Echevarria said he'd parked in front of his Prospect Street home and let the pit bull, Gracie, out of the car and through the gate of his 4-foot fence. The dog bounded up the steps onto the front stoop and waited for Echevarria, with her tail wagging and nose pressed against the front door, as he fished out his house keys.
At that point, Echevarria said, Jersey City Police Officer Juan Berrios walked over and delivered his threat.
"He said, 'You better put that dog on a leash or I'll shoot it,'" recalled Echevarria as Gracie, a rambunctious, friendly blue-nosed American pit bull, played at his feet.
"I said, 'Excuse me?' and he repeated it three times, 'I'm going to shoot your dog,'" Echevarria said. "I felt like he was threatening to shoot one of my own kids."
Echevarria said Gracie stayed on the stoop as he spoke to the officer, who was working a traffic detail on Prospect Street during road work.
"I know she is a pit bull but she did not growl or bark at him," he said. "All she would do is lick you to death. Kids come to my door and ask if they can play with her all the time."
Echevarria said he asked Berrios for his badge number and the cop reportedly replied: "1-2-3-4."
Berrios could not be reached for comment yesterday.
After the exchange, Echevarria said he went to the North Precinct and filed a complaint. When he got home, he said, "my house was surrounded by 12 cops."
He said one of the officers then handed him two tickets - with fines totaling $112 - one for failure to leash the dog and another for not showing proper canine identification and registration.
He said he was was never asked for the dog's registration, or he would have provided it. The dog is registered, according to Jersey City Animal Control Officer Joe Frank.
A police spokesman, Sgt. Edgar Martinez, said he would not comment specifically on Echevarria's complaint, but said it is not police policy to threaten to shoot unleashed dogs.
"Since he filed a complaint, we now cannot comment on an ongoing investigation," he said.
Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio said that based on Echevarria's story, he did not break any laws.
"Dogs don't have to be leashed on private property. Leash laws are aimed for public property only," DeFazio said.
Neighbors support Echevarria's defense of Gracie's demeanor.
"She's a very excitable dog but I like her, everybody says she's great," one neighbor said. "She really listens to him, too. I don't think if I approached her she would bite me, just jump up and down."
http://www.nj.com/news/jjournal/index.ssf?/base/news-0/113014509877480.xml&coll=3&thispage=1