Mission: Caught on Video—Police Officer Punches K-9 in the Face

Posted by Calvin on January 08, 2025

Update (September 18, 2024): After the Fayetteville City Council voted in favor of petitioning the court to release police department footage of an officer punching his K-9 multiple times, a superior court judge denied the city’s petition and will not allow the release of the body-worn and vehicle-mounted camera footage.

During the council meeting on August 12, a PETA representative stated that resistance to releasing the body-camera footage can only mean that there’s something to hide. A local dog behavior expert also spoke in favor of releasing the footage, which she said ought to be used as a “learning tool” to address what happens when an officer loses control.

PETA continues to push for an independent investigation, immediate removal of the dog from the officer’s custody, and an end to the use of K-9s unless the department can commit to using only humane training and handling methods. If you agree with us, please send a message to Fayetteville’s mayor, city manager, and city council. Be sure to keep your message polite and respectful.

Original post:

Vid footage recorded by a bystander shows what appears to be a Fayetteville, North Carolina, police officer abusing a K-9 in public on a Saturday afternoon in late June. 😱 If watching it leaves you shook, please help make sure no other K-9s are harmed this way. Heads up—the vid is really disturbing, so don’t feel like you have to watch it.

In the footage, the officer is seen holding the dog by the collar so that his front legs are off the ground. The officer punches the animal in the face at least three times with a closed fist. 😰 The officer then drags the dog by the collar toward a police car, and the K-9 turns his head and nips at the officer but doesn’t appear to make contact. The officer grabs the dog by the muzzle—forcing his mouth shut—and then swings him around by the collar while still holding his mouth closed. 😡

The Fayetteville Police Department released a statement that the incident “is being investigated by [its] internal affairs office”—but dogs like this K-9 need more than just an investigation. PETA is calling for the K-9 to be removed from the abusive handler immediately, for the officer to be reassigned to duties that don’t involve interaction with animals, and for the agency to review and revise its policies to use only humane K-9 training methods. If the department can’t commit to handling K-9s without abusing them, it should stop using dogs altogether.

Help Ensure No Other Police Officer Does This

If you agree with us, please send a message to Fayetteville’s mayor, city manager, and city council. By doing so, you’ll help make sure no other K-9s are abused by this police department—and you’ll also earn peta2 points in our Rewards Program. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Copy and paste this block of e-mail addresses in the “To” field of your e-mail:

[email protected], [email protected], 

[email protected], [email protected], 

[email protected], [email protected], 

[email protected], [email protected], 

[email protected], [email protected], 

[email protected]

2. Write a message urging the officials to make sure that the dog is removed from the officer’s custody and that the officer is reassigned to duties that don’t involve animals. You can use the following text as a template, but please keep your message polite and respectful.

I was shocked and deeply upset to see the video of a Fayetteville police officer repeatedly punching a K-9 in the face. Please ensure that the dog is immediately removed from the perpetrator’s custody and that the officer is reassigned to duties that don’t involve animals.

It’s extremely concerning that the police department appears to deem such violence and cruelty to animals acceptable. If handlers are unable to treat dogs humanely, the department shouldn’t have a K-9 unit at all. Please engage an unbiased outside agency to investigate this incident, which would surely have already resulted in a criminal charge if the abuser hadn’t been wearing a police uniform.

Thank you.

3. Take a screenshot of your e-mail and submit it for 15 peta2 points. (Heads-up: You’ll only get points once for taking this action.)

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