Police: Dog shot after biting officer during search for drugs

VERO BEACH — Police shot a pit bull terrier after it bit an officer on the leg and charged at another officer during a drug search Tuesday at a home, officials said.

The tan pit bull, weighing about 75 pounds, was struck once and taken to a 24-hour animal hospital, Vero Beach police spokesman Master Officer Darrell Rivers said. The pit bull was released from the hospital Tuesday night and turned over to the Humane Society of Vero Beach & Indian River County.

The pit bull was expected to make a full recovery at the nonprofit organization, Rivers said. The local humane society has three veterinarians, along with 45 other employees, who carry out health and wellness checks of its animals.

“The bullet did not strike any vital organs or bones,” Rivers said. The names of the two officers involved in the incident were not released.

The incident unfolded about 9 p.m. Tuesday when two SWAT team officers executed a search warrant at an apartment in the 1700 block of Highland Avenue. A woman who had two pit bulls answered the door at the Highland Gardens Apartments.

The woman put one dog in the bedroom and the other in a hallway closet, Rivers said. When one of the officers went inside the apartment, the pit bull in the closet came out and bit the policeman on the back of his leg, Rivers said.

The officer was able to get the dog off of him. The pit bull then charged at a second officer and was then shot, Rivers said.

Police initially said a semi-automatic weapon was used, but then clarified the dog was struck with a bullet fired from a handgun.

The pit bull then retreated back to the closet. The dog was taken to a hospital while the injured officer was taken by ambulance to Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital, Rivers said.

The officer had minor injuries, was treated and released late Tuesday, Rivers said. Two people who live at the home, dog owners Danae Jean, 31, and Kimberly Hamilton, 35, were arrested on drug charges after police found cocaine and drug paraphernalia inside the residence, Rivers said.

In a bedroom, officers found the items inside and on top of a dresser, and also in a shoe box underneath the bed, reports show.

The women denied owning the narcotics. Two men who were also at the home were not arrested.

Hamilton and Jean were both released Wednesday from the Indian River County Jail; Hamilton on $5,500 bond and Jean on $5,000 bond.

It was unclear if officers had been previously called to the home for drug searches. Details on if Vero police have shot animals in the past were not available.

Rivers said it would be up to the humane society to decide if the dog will be quarantined and if it will be given back to its owners.

Typically, an internal affairs investigation is launched when an officer fires a weapon while on duty. Rivers said detectives went to the scene Tuesday night and determined the officer who fired the shot did not violate police policy.

There were no plans to launch an internal investigation, Rivers said.