Police officer in Fort Mill shoots and kills big dog while protecting a smaller one

A Fort Mill police officer used deadly force on a dog Wednesday.

According to an incident report, officers were called to Peachtree Lane a little past 7 p.m. for an animal complaint. A woman told officers two large black dogs were on her porch. She hadn’t seen them before and didn’t know how aggressive they were. They were gone by the time officers arrived, but were found on a patrol of the area.

Officers approached a residence on Orchard Court where the dogs were, according to the report, and one dog growled but didn’t advance toward them. The homeowner on Orchard Court said he hadn’t seen the dogs before and in speaking with police, his smaller dog ran out toward the larger dogs.

The two dogs came toward the smaller dog, which officers were able to get back inside the home. As officers walked back, one of the larger dogs growled and attempted to bite an officer, according to the report. The officer kicked the dog but it continued coming toward him in an aggressive manner.

The officer then took out his firearm and fired a round into the dog. It fell over and died on scene, according to the report. York County Animal Control was contacted and someone came to remove the dog. The scene was photographed and the resident gave a statement on the incident to police.

This story was originally published August 17, 2017 at 4:12 PM with the headline "Police officer in Fort Mill shoots and kills big dog while protecting a smaller one."