2015/10/24

It is little wonder that advocacy groups have turned their attention to the Ramsey County sheriff’s office of late.

October 22 is the National Day of Protest against Police Brutality.

However, these campaigners are seeking justice for a member of law enforcement – a German Shepherd named Boone that was assaulted by an officer he assisted.

Just over four months ago on June 15, Brett Berry was nominated by the department to accompany the dog for canine certification trials. He was Boone’s K9 handler.

Berry was staying at the Black Bear Casino and Resort with other deputies when he physically assaulted the dog.

The entire incident was caught on surveillance video.

The accused officer appeared in court last week and a pre-trial date was set for January.

A clear case of animal cruelty

It all started when Black Bear security officers escorted a visibly distressed Berry out of the casino’s bar.

Around five minutes after being shown the door, the cop starts assaulting Boone.

The disturbing footage shows that the dog approaches Berry, wagging his tail. First he slaps the dog then ruthlessly grabs him by the collar and drags the animal along before slamming him to the ground.

The panicked canine runs away from his handler but the enraged man chases after him and repeatedly strikes him with an object he is holding in his left hand.

Then Boone ended up running between the two entrance doors of the casino when he got stuck between them.

As if his previous ill-treatment was not enough, Berry hit Boone so many times that one loses count.

“Our silence should not be confused”

Sergeant John Eastham of the sheriff’s office said the department is not taking the matter lightly. However, there has not been much comment from the authorities.

In response to this he said: “Our silence should not be confused with inactivity or apathy”.

The 47-year-old officer was charged with two misdemeanors – animal cruelty and assaulting a public safety dog.

Andrew Henderson is a St Paul resident who organized a protest outside the sheriff’s office on the day of Berry’s court appearance.

He says the community would like to see the officer dismissed. In addition to this, suggested it would be a good idea for the deputy to volunteer at an animal shelter.

The people gathered at the protest wrote chalk messages on the sidewalk.

As the country gets ready to rally together to declare their rejection of police brutality, one note on the pavement outside the Ramsey County sheriff’s office sums up exactly how things should be. It reads – “badges don’t grant extra rights”.

Watch the video below showing the cop beat this innocent animal: