A San Bernardino County household is demanding justice after a sheriff’s deputy allegedly stormed into their yard throughout a stolen automobile investigation and fatally shot their canine — a case now escalating right into a authorized battle with accusations of misconduct and a shocking lack of transparency by legislation enforcement.
The confrontation unfolded Could 4 simply earlier than midday, when a deputy with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Division was investigating a reported stolen automobile in a neighborhood the place resident Jesus Serna lives.
Authorities later decided the automobile had no connection to Serna or his house.
Surveillance video obtained by The California Put up reveals the deputy opening a gate and coming into Serna’s yard with out consent.
One canine, Raven, approached calmly and appeared pleasant, wagging her tail.
Seconds later, Serna’s rottweiler, Daisy, started barking and moved towards the deputy.
Inside moments of the encounter, the deputy opened hearth, killing the canine.
Serna was not house on the time and mentioned he later obtained a name from authorities informing him what had occurred.
“She was simply defending her house,” Serna instructed KTLA of Daisy. “I requested why they had been there and so they instructed me it was because of a automobile being close to my house that was stolen. They tried to knock on my door after which they let themselves in.”
Serna mentioned he was given an apology however nonetheless has obtained no clear rationalization for why deadly pressure was used.
Lawyer Tim Scott, who’s representing Serna, mentioned the footage has solely intensified issues about how the state of affairs was dealt with.
“The very fact is, no care was given Daisy as she died slowly; so both the deputy violated coverage, or the insurance policies themselves are insufficient,” he instructed The Put up.
“If mail carriers and Amazon drivers can do their jobs with out killing pets, that’s not an excessive amount of to ask of our law-enforcement officers,” Scott mentioned.
Scott additionally described disturbing moments allegedly captured on video after the taking pictures.
“At one level, one deputy is joking to the opposite saying, ‘Yeah, effectively that’s what you need to do, killing the f****** canine,’” Scott mentioned of the footage.
Serna mentioned what he witnessed from the aftermath added to his misery.
“I didn’t see any emotion from any of them in direction of [Daisy],” he mentioned. “They only picked her up and carried her away like she was yesterday’s trash.”
In keeping with Serna, deputies later allowed him to view physique digicam footage, however he mentioned it nonetheless failed to clarify or justify why the taking pictures occurred.
Scott additional accused authorities of mishandling Daisy’s stays and blocking the household’s capability to conduct their very own unbiased evaluation.
The household has now filed a proper declare towards the sheriff’s division, a required step earlier than pursuing a federal civil rights lawsuit.
“The Sheriffs’ deputies unlawfully eliminated Daisy’s physique, and allowed her stays to be destroyed earlier than the household may recuperate them. It was no coincidence that destroying her stays additionally prevented us from doing any forensic evaluation.”
He additionally claimed officers have refused to launch key information tied to the case, elevating additional questions on transparency.
“All proof surrounding Daisy’s dying—together with bodyworn digicam footage, police experiences, and even probably the most primary incident data—has been withheld regardless of lawful public information requests. This lack of transparency has made this incident much more outrageous and painful for the Serna household.”
Serna is now calling for accountability, together with disciplinary motion and systemic modifications in how legislation enforcement handles encounters with pets.
“I do need justice,” he mentioned. “I additionally don’t need to see somebody lose their job. I do know individuals have household to care for, however they haven’t mentioned something but, haven’t mentioned the man’s title. I do need some accountability, some disciplinary motion. I need solutions for his actions.”
The deputy concerned has not been publicly recognized and stays on obligation whereas the investigation continues.
“They described it as horrific, it was like seeing a member of the family murdered on video, as a result of that’s precisely what Daisy was—a member of the household,
