Family Of Pomeranian Killed By Off-Duty Policeman's Pit Bull Files Lawsuit
By Chuck Sudo in News on Jul 5, 2012 5:30PM
Willy, a 2-Year-old Pomeranian-Papillon mix, had to be put down after being attacked by a police officer's pit bull at Montrose Avenue dog beach on St. Patrick's Day. (Photo via the Fisher family.)
Audrey Fisher and her daughter Fayla Rodriguez filed the suit in Cook County Circuit Court Tuesday, claiming that off-duty police officer Matthew Bracken failed to intervene or identify when his dog attacked their dog, Willy.
Fisher incurred $5,700 in veterinary bills as a result of the attack and Willy died three days later. Bracken allegedly walked away from the scene with his dog and refused to identify himself. Cell phone camera photos captured images of Bracken and his dog, and Bracken later admitted to his superiors that he was the owner of the pit bull, relieved of his duties pending an Internal Affairs investigation and cited by the Police Department's Animal Crimes unit for not reporting an animal attack within 24 hours.
The lawsuit claims one bystander tried to stop the attack by hitting the pit bull on the head, leading Bracken to yell, "Why are you hitting my (expletive) dog?" He refused to identify himself to Fisher and allegedly denied he was a cop to another bystander who recognized the sunglasses he was wearing as one popular among police officers.
Fisher and Rodriguez are suing Bracken only and are seeking $275,000 in damages.