A civil lawsuit filed by a Colorado family has accused a police officer of callously shooting and killing their 14-month-old “sweet, loving, playful” puppy without any warning.
In June 2019, after a long day of making deliveries in Loveland, Colorado, couple Wendy Love and Jay Hamm stopped in what they believed was a vacant business parking lot. The two wanted to stretch their legs, give their three dogs water, and allow them to get some exercise.
Unbeknown to them, the business owner spotted the family and their dogs on his surveillance cameras and called the police. Although they parked away from the company’s dumpster, the owner claimed he wanted authorities to ensure they did not tamper with it.
After pulling up to the business, two of their dogs — Bubba and Herkimer — “playfully” galloped toward the policeman to greet him. Without warning, Loveland Police Department officer Mat Grashorn pulled out his gun and fired at Herkimer, a Staffordshire Terrier-Boxer mix.
The officer shot the puppy twice—one bullet to his head, another to the side of his chest.
“He quietly got out of his car, slowly closed his door, and snuck up on the family,” Sarah Schielke, the family’s attorney, said in a statement. “Grashorn did not retreat. He did not return to his car. Instead, he pulled out his gun and pointed it at the dog.”
After shooting the dog, the officer repeatedly yelled for Love to get away from the dying puppy, claiming that her own dog would bite her because he was wounded.
“You killed him!” Love screamed while fighting back the tears.
“I can’t believe you f****** did that,” Hamm said.
“Maybe you ought to have your dogs in your truck then!” the officer yelled angrily. “Is this your property? That’s why I’m here, ‘cus you’re trespassing.”
“Can we take him to a vet? Please, can we take him to a vet?” Love pleaded.
“Ma’am, you’re not going to be able to help him,” the officer callously responded as the dog laid there dying. “Just stay there and wait for me to get some more help.”
Officer Grashorn never allowed the family an opportunity to leash or place the dogs in their vehicle before he surreptitiously walked up on them and fired without any warning, claiming the dog was a “pitbull.”
While speaking with his supervisor, Sergeant Phil Metzler, over the phone, the officer discussed slapping the family with a ticket, charging them for having a “vicious dog” on the loose since the family had threatened to alert local news media. At the vet, Lovedale police claimed Herkimer “had attacked one of our officers.”
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Because a “vicious dog” charge requires that an animal has caused bodily harm to someone, the district attorney dismissed that charge.
In its review, the Lovedale Police Department said Officer Grashorn was “justified” for his “reasonable” response it claimed followed “LPD protocols, policy, and procedure.”
Herkimer fought for his life, clinging to it for four days after the shooting before the family heartbreakingly euthanized him.
“You should’ve shocked him,” Hamm had told the officer.
“Thanks for telling me how to do my job,” Officer Grashorn responded in a cold-blooded and heartless tone. “I’m not in the business to get bit.”
Five months later, the police department placed Officer Grashorn and Sergeant Metzler on administrative leave after both had fired their weapons, killing a person during a welfare check.
“This is yet another agonizing illustration of all that is wrong at the Loveland Police Department,” said attorney Schielke, who has filed several lawsuits against the department over officers' use of excessive force. “What in the actual hell is going on at the Loveland Police Department?”
“This shooting … make[s] one thing very clear: the Loveland Police Department itself has made the City of Loveland a more dangerous – and frankly, terrifying – place to live,” Schielke continued. “Our grandmothers are not safe. Our disabled are not safe. Our children are not safe. Even our family dogs are not safe. How much worse can it get?”
Grashorn has not responded to the civil complaint filed in court yet.
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