Footage released by the Racine County, Wisconsin Sheriff’s Office showed a wild encounter between a suspect and a police dog he allegedly tried to bite. Deputies were trying to apprehend Leland O’Malley, 44, who was allegedly causing a disturbance by going to multiple houses trying to get in to sleep.
When Deputy David Fisher and K-9 officer Murphy approached O’Malley and told him to get away from a house where he’d been banging on the window, O’Malley wouldn’t listen, and had a hand in his pocket that he wouldn’t take out, a criminal complaint said.
O’Malley started moving towards them, and Fisher told him to stop or he’d let Murphy loose, according to local WITI. When O’Malley continued coming towards them, Murphy sprung into action, grabbing O’Malley by the arm. Video shows the man fighting back against Murphy, wrapping his arm around the dog’s head. Fisher can be heard yelling, “Stop fighting my dog!”
O’Malley eventually gave up, but not before allegedly trying to bite the dog twice.
The person who reported O’Malley said he looked intoxicated. Sheriff Christopher Schmaling seemed to agree.
“It appeared to me he was not in the right state of mind,” he said.
Sheriff Schmaling said Murphy was not injured in the fight, and acted exactly according to how he was taught. Schmaling was also glad that no additional force was needed to apprehend the suspect.
“So here’s the bright side,” he said. “I don’t have a deputy sheriff that’s injured or killed. The dog is not injured. So this is a win-win.”
[Image via Fox 8 screengrab]
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