Owner of pit bull shot by police says dog was not ‘vicious’

A Coral Springs police officer who was trying to return a lost dog to its owner ended up shooting another dog that attacked him, investigators said. The woman who owns the lost dog — and the dog that was shot — is upset and says less violent options were available.

“They could have tased her, they could have sprayed her,” said Julissa Santos, 21. “They could have done so many other things instead of shooting her.”

Officer Jonathan Bromley found a 9-year-old white male pit bull mix named Sonny walking on the 3700 block of Northwest 114th Lane about 4:10 p.m. Monday, police said. According to the incident report, Bromley put Sonny in the back seat of his patrol car and asked a group of neighbors if anyone knew where the dog lived. One person said the dog’s owner, Santos, lived about two blocks away — but warned that another dog lived there, “which was aggressive and would bite.”

When the officer arrived at the apartments in the 3500 block of Northwest 114th Lane he was met outside by an 8-year-old, brown and white, female pit bull mix named Juicyy that started growling, showing her teeth, and running toward him.

“Like any other dog she started barking because she saw a big man suited up in front of her,” said Santos, who was not home at the time and relied on neighbors’ accounts of what happened.

Bromley shouted at Juicyy and the dog stopped momentarily before charging at him again. The officer backed away, but when the dog got to within four feet, the officer fired one shot that struck the dog just below the right eye, the report stated.

“They’re claiming that my dog was trying to attack which I know is not true because my dog is not vicious at all,” Santos said.

Juicyy ran off but was found later by several officers who followed a trail of blood into Santos’ apartment.

Sonny was returned to Santos and Juicyy was taken to Coral Springs Animal Hospital where she was eventually euthanized.

“The vet said the cost would be about $10,000 to $15,000 [and] there was no guarantee for her to go back to normal,” she said. “Other than not having the money to pay for it, we had no chance of saving her so she had to be put to sleep.”

In a separate incident on Sept. 18, another Coral Springs officer required hospital treatment after being bitten on the leg by a dog, so police are reminding dog owners to keep their pets on a leash when outside for the safety of the community and their own pets.