Important Not Guilty verdict in dog ‘warning shot’ case

Retired Cincinnati, Ohio police Lt. Harry Thomas was found “not guilty” by Carmel, Indiana City Court Judge Brian Poindexter following a three-hour bench trial

Thomas is the ex-cop who fired a single round into the ground on his own property, within inches of his own leg last October when a neighbor’s vicious dog put a jaw lock on his lower limb, after having menaced a neighbor who was walking her small dog across the street from Thomas’ house. His legal adventure began when a responding police officer wrote a report that resulted in a charge against him; a case that got attention on three different gun rights forums, here, here and here. We wrote about his dilemma the other day, noting that today was his trial date.

According to Thomas’ account of the trial, the prosecutor tried repeatedly to trip him into admitting that he didn’t have to fire the shot, but Thomas, who had appeared at numerous trials as a witness during his law enforcement career, offered an affirmative defense; that is, he testified as his own expert witness, explaining how firing as he did was the only safe thing to do.

The judge even acknowledged – against prosecution arguments – that under Indiana law and local ordinance, firing in self-defense does not necessarily require shooting someone or some animal fatally. There is no prohibition against “warning shots,” even though firing one is frowned upon by police agencies, a fact that Thomas confirmed under cross examination.

Thomas told this column that the verdict sets something of a precedent, that one needn’t kill when firing in self-defense. “We now have a precedent that you are not required to shoot-to-kill,” he said happily. During his police career, Thomas never had to kill anyone, and one suspects he sleeps well at night as a result.

Thomas had a couple of very good witnesses who testified about the dog that attacked Thomas, and the dog’s mate. The owner of those dogs has since moved farther into the country, apparently in part to keep his animals away from people.

The retired cop from the Flatlands may not realize it, but his actions may offer some guidance to citizens of the West, and no doubt there will be more discussion about this subject.

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