Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Reconsiders Shooting Stray Dogs

By Mark Shade

HARRISBURG, Pa., Jan 4 (Reuters) - So broke that it was considering having police officers shoot stray dogs, Pennsylvania's capital city Harrisburg is reconsidering the policy in the wake of public anger.

Harrisburg lacks the money to pay an animal shelter to take in strays, so its police department issued a memo last month giving officers the option of shooting dangerous dogs and dropping their carcasses at a state Department of Agriculture loading dock.

Police have yet to take that extreme measure and controversy generated by dog-lovers has led to a reconsideration of the policy, a city official said on Wednesday.

New guidelines could be in place by Thursday, but city officials declined to reveal exactly what they would say.

Facing a growing debt an unable to pay back bondholders who financed the repair and retrofit of a city incinerator, Harrisburg attempted to declare bankruptcy only to have the bid struck down by a federal court last month.

The Dec. 5 police memo directed officers to either offer the dogs for adoption to the person who called to report a stray, adopt the animals themselves, take them to an area where it would be safe to release them, or kill them.

The city's Bureau of Law is now redrafting the memo at the request of the city solicitor, said Robert Philbin, a spokesman for Harrisburg Mayor Linda Thompson.

"The general directions and guidelines (of the Dec. 5 memo) remain in play," Philbin said. "However, the language is being modified to comply (with) the solicitor's recommendations. This is in process right now."

The original memo said officers could kill a stray dog if it was "vicious and a danger to the public and/or officers or if the animal is obviously sick, injured or suffering."

A member of the governor's Dog Law Advisory Board warned such a policy would be illegal, saying state law required stray dogs to be kept for 48 hours before any decision to euthanize them.

Some citizens were outraged.

"Honestly this is so unethical and inhumane that I am sick," one reader wrote to the Harrisburg Patriot-News.

"These abused, abandoned animals need and deserve our protection, not abandonment or death by shooting because of money," wrote another. (Editing by Daniel Trotta)

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Comments

[Christy Clark]

07:42 PM on 01/21/2012

They are just opening themselves up for lawsuits and an increased divide between them and the community members they serve. A police officer does not have the training that a veterinarian has to declare a dog is feral. Some dogs will have an injury that changes their behavior, or an illness, or is just plain scared. They are going to end up shooting someone's pet that got loose and someone will be resigning after the community is in uproar. I just read that they are reopening their youth program from the 40's to connect with the youth in their community to prevent crime. If they want to connect with youth that have had rough times - make a program where these youths are feeding, walking and caring for the strays and learning about empathy, responsibility, and working as a community. They are the next generation, and they will be shaping your future community - make it a good one. These kids are capable of doing great things.

[lonelyliver]

06:21 PM on 01/05/2012

Apparently this issue was all over $800: http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2012/01/parents_of_murder_victim_settl.html
The mayor of Harrisburg is a joke.

[iphimedia]

05:48 PM on 01/05/2012

Hi, everyone. I have set up a petition, http://www.change.org/petitions/police-instructed-to-kill-dump-animals to pressure the Harrisburg city Mayor's Office (Linda Thompson) to rescind this memo and make financial arrangements with the Humane Society of Greater Harrisburg Area to let them continue to their great work of compassionately sheltering strays and distressed animals. You can help by 1) signing it, 2) contacting the Mayor's Office and expressing your outrage http://www.facebook.com/pages/Harrisburg-PA/73637113187 http://harrisburgpa.gov/about/ 3) posting it in comment threads, Twitter, FB and other social media, 4) contributing to Humane Society so they can get on with their jobs http://www.humanesocietyhbg.org/ and contacting media to increase national attention on this horrific policy. Write letters to the editor and/or ask tv, radio and newspapers to cover this story.Here are some media links to send other media. http://www.abc27.com/story/16449994/leaked-memo-instructs-police-to-abandon-or-kill-stray-animals http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2012/01/memo_tells_harrisburg_police_t.html This policy will actually increase the number of strays because no effort is being made to reunite lost dogs with their owners; it will cause suffering, danger and a terrible dilemma to animals and untrained police officers, and it will take already scarce police resources away from crime. How many other cash-strapped states and localities are stooping to such tactics? Thanks for your help.

[dbrett480]

02:48 PM on 01/10/2012

The memo only directed officers to shoot the stray dog if it presents a threat to the public or is suffering. Most departments have the same policy.

[Judith Jaehn]

04:27 PM on 01/05/2012

Time to start shooting homeless drug addicts living on the streets!!!!!

[Roadrun]

07:58 PM on 01/05/2012

But it's a higher profit to simply sell the 99% as slaves in foreign countries. And Toto too? Yes, Toto too.

On a slightly less cynical side - once we lose our animals it won't be long before we discover that in doing so - we lost our humanity.

[karen lyons kalmenson]

04:17 PM on 01/05/2012

slaughter solves nothing, heartlessness breeds more heartlessness

[Roadrun]

07:50 PM on 01/05/2012

And that goes for more than killing our most loyal and trusted friends. These days heartlessness is becoming a national epidemic.

[karen lyons kalmenson]

05:56 AM on 01/06/2012

sure seems that way:(

[Viorel Bogdan Georgescu]

02:33 PM on 01/05/2012

Shooting the dogs? haha and these are the Americans that gave us lessons about how to deal with the dogs problem? (check the 'Romanian stray dogs' link).

[karen lyons kalmenson]

04:17 PM on 01/05/2012

am involved with that on FB

[Dora Ponce Crossposter]

04:56 PM on 01/07/2012

Please post the link for everyone. Thanks.

[Viorel Bogdan Georgescu]

10:33 AM on 01/09/2012

If the reply is for me, I meant this link
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/22/romanian-stray-dogs-parliament-euthanize_n_1107666.html

[tomeb]

12:54 PM on 01/05/2012

Its more time and cost assuming for a cop to shoot dog and take to a drop off.. Not to mention while he or she is doing that, a crime is being commited. Gather up strays and to animal shelter..

[dbrett480]

02:49 PM on 01/10/2012

No it isn't. Anytime an officer fires a weapon (other than at the range), a detailed report must be completed.

[klwarner]

12:51 PM on 01/05/2012

They should just start mandatory dog adoption in Harrisburg, might make it a nicer place.

[denideamachine]

12:08 PM on 01/05/2012

We turn more and more into a beaten down oppressed nation every day. This is the type of thing they do in countries that still have massive rabies problems. Not in Harrisburg Penn a relatively populated American city

[Master-T]

11:52 AM on 01/05/2012

I promise you if Harrisburg enables this practice, not only will some strays get shot. Peoples' pets who like to wander a little will get shot too. Guaranteed.

Speak up Harrisburg. Let your officials know you won't stand for cops blasting away at stray dogs.

[susanbsbi]

11:49 AM on 01/05/2012

How about shooting the people? that is as stupid as shooting strays. If your budget is so low, then raise the property taxes by 1% and that should cover it, with cutting the top officers of the city and count salaries in half. No body wants to pay taxes, but every body forgets, that is what runs the cities, the school district, the police, the fire department and the ASPCA.

[tomeb]

12:12 PM on 01/05/2012

Senator Rick Santorum,is part of this state gov. This state was a majority democratic state and was in bettter shape until slowly the republicans weeded in. ... They have casinos and all kinds of taxes... These people already are taxed heavily.