$1 Million Lawsuit Filed Against Cop Who Shot Blind, Deaf Dog

A federal lawsuit has been filed on behalf of the owner of a blind and deaf dog that wasrepeatedly shot by a Missouri police officer after it became lost in someone’s yard earlier this month.

The complaint, filed on behalf of dog owner Nicholas Hunter on Tuesday against the city of Sturgeon and police officer Myron Woodson, seeks more than $1 million in damages, the Animal League Defense Fund announced Wednesday.

Woodson had been called in to help find the owner of the dog, a 13-pound Shih Tzu named Teddy. The officer shot him twice at point-blank range, as seen in body camera footage. Minutes after the shooting, Hunter, who’d gotten a call from a friend about Teddy escaping his backyard kennel, confronted the officer.

“At no time during the encounter between Teddy and Defendant Woodson did Teddy show any aggression towards Defendant Woodson,” states the complaint. “Teddy never barked, growled, or even moved towards Defendant Woodson. Instead, the small, blind and deaf dog simply kept trying to walk away, oblivious to the danger that Defendant Woodson posed to him.”

The city failed to properly train, supervise and discipline Woodson, resulting in the unlawful seizure and killing of Teddy, Hunter’s lawsuit maintains.

The city hadinitially defending Woodson, saying he “acted within his authority” to protect citizens from the dog. But Sturgeon Mayor Kevin Abrahamson resigned after the dog’s death, and Woodson was placed on leave until further notice,the city announced over the weekend.

Representatives for the city and police department did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s requests for comment Friday.

“I hope this case can generate attention that will result in state-level laws to provide mandatory training and