Bloomington Herald Times

OWEN COUNTY
Residents upset by dog shooting want end to ‘good ol’ boy’ treatment of animals
Supporters of Buddy the dog say incident not isolated, and that officers should follow state regulations

By Dann Denny 331-4350 | ddenny@heraldt.com
July 25, 2008

 http://www.heraldtimesonline.com/stories/2008/07/25/news.qp-8429964.sto

If supporters of Buddy have their way, Buddy’s death will lead to life — through changes in the way local law enforcement officials treat animals like him.

About 40 people, many of them wearing “Justice for Buddy” T-shirts, gathered Thursday night for an Owen County Humane Society meeting to talk about the stray hunting dog who recently lost his life when he was shot on the fairgrounds by a sheriff’s deputy.

Some members said they favored diplomacy, while others felt the threat of legal action was the only way to get the attention of the town police and sheriff’s department. Several members volunteered to form a liaison to speak with Owen County Sheriff Chester “Pudge” Richardson and his deputies about their concerns.

In a nutshell, they want the officers to swap what they call a “good ol’ boy” callousness toward stray or loose animals for an adherence to state rules regarding their treatment. Lova Standeford, the society’s president, said Indiana Department of Animal Health regulations say if a person is bitten by an animal, the animal should be captured and quarantined if possible — but not destroyed.

“Just because Spencer is Small Town USA doesn’t mean the rules do not apply,” she said.

Standeford said there is a witness willing to testify he saw a deputy sheriff shoot and bury Buddy on the fairgrounds.

“What we want is to make sure this kind of action does not take place in the future,” she said. “No more animals should be destroyed without just cause.” Buddy, perhaps lured to the fairground by the aroma of food or the desire for human companionship, apparently got into a goat pen and began chasing and nipping at one of the goats.

When Melanie McHugh tried to pull him out of the pen, she said, he bit her on the arm, though his teeth did not break her skin.

“If the skin was not broken, then she was not bitten,” said Standeford. McHugh got control of Buddy, tied him to a trailer, and gave him some water and hamburger. When he chewed through the rope, she tied him up again, this time with a cable.

“I saw Buddy panting and barking when he was tied up,” Standeford said. “When I brought him some water, a man said he was going to take Buddy out back and shoot him. We live in a civilized society, so I didn’t take him seriously.”

Several Humane Society members, including the organization’s vice president Pam Browning, said they preferred to first talk with the sheriff’s department about state regulations regarding the procedures that should be followed when handling stray animals. But Browning said if the sheriff’s department seems uninterested in changing its ways, she will donate $5,000 to hire an attorney to explore the society’s legal options.

Many at the meeting said what they see as the execution of Buddy is not an isolated incident, but one that reflects a systemic problem among local law enforcement officials. One woman said when she called the town police department about a stray dog in her neighborhood, the police officer told her to lure it to the park “so he could pop it.” Brook Rieman said that last spring, when she told the sheriff there was a pit bull running free in her neighborhood, he told her to shoot it.

“We get lots of calls every month from people who tell us the sheriff has told them to shoot stray animals,” Browning said. “That attitude has to change.”  During the meeting, some people suggested making an example of the sheriff’s deputy for his actions, but others said that would not be fair because he was simply taking orders from the sheriff.

Other suggestions included organizing a demonstration, filing a wrongful-death suit against the sheriff’s department and writing a letter to county commissioners. Near the meeting’s conclusion, Standeford announced that the society had created a Buddy Memorial Fund, which would be used to help stray and loose animals be returned to their owners or find homes.

In June, Buddy showed up in Spencer out of nowhere. He was quickly “adopted” by a neighborhood and by other community members, who would scratch him behind the ears and give him food.  Those at the meeting said it was especially tragic that a member of the town whose heart Buddy had stolen would steal his life.