Lauren Hernandez

Statesman Journal

The man who shot and killed a pit bull-type dog while walking his dog Saturday in Keizer will not face citations or charges.

He was walking his leashed 3-year-old Springer Spaniel northbound in the 6100 block of River Road North when he saw two loose dogs break into a trot from a wooded area immediately adjacent to the field he was walking in around 2 p.m.

One of the dogs, later identified as an 18-month old pit bull-type dog named Ezekiel, started running toward the man and his dog.

He told an investigating officer he verbally ordered the dog "stop," "stay" and "get back." When the dog failed to stop and continued running, he unholstered his .45 caliber handgun and shot the dog. It is unknown how many shots were fired.

After the dog was shot, another man emerged from the nearby treeline, ran toward the man and yelled at him for shooting his dog. Witnesses described the man identified as Ezekiel's owner as being upset after the shooting. Police didn't identify either of the men involved.

Ezekiel's owner told the investigating officer he heard the dog walker "yell 'no' several times" before shooting the dog. Kuhns said Ezekiel's owner was living in a homeless camp in the wooded area behind the treeline.

The dog walker told police he felt threatened when the dog continued to run and lunged at the man in an aggressive manner. A witness told the investigating officer the dog walker looked "devastated" after shooting the dog.

Discharging a firearm within the city limits is prohibited in Keizer. But it "can be justifiable and not criminal when that conduct is necessary as an emergency measure to avoid an imminent public or private injury," Kuhns said.

Allowing a dog to run at large in Marion County is a civil infraction.

Email Lauren Hernandez at lehernande@statesmanjournal.com, call 503-399-6743 or follow on Twitter @LaurenPorFavor

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