SEVERN, Md. — A police officer shot and killed a dog while investigating a reported theft in Severn, Anne Arundel County Police said.
An officer responded to the 1800 block of Graybird Court at about 3:30 p.m. Sunday. The officer and the adult male victim walked to the rear door of a residence where the victim said he had been living. The man opened the lower level of a sliding glass door at the rear of the house, at which point a 3-year-old female Cane Corso Mastiff came out of the dwelling.
According to the American Kennel Club, Cano Corso breeds typical stand at about 28 inches tall at the shoulder and can often weigh more than 100 pounds.
The officer said the dog took “an aggressive posture where it began growling and bearing its teeth,” police said in a statement. The officer started backing away while simultaneously yelling at the man to put the dog inside or get it under control. Police said the dog kept advancing on the officer, who kept backing up while shouting commands.
The yard in the rear of the house was fenced in, and the officer could not see the gate as he backed up in the enclosed space. Police said the dog advanced faster at the officer, at which point he produced his service weapon and fired “at the aggressive dog.”
Police said the dog was not owned by the theft victim who was speaking with the officer, therefore, he, nor anyone else present at the dwelling, could gain control of the dog.
The dog died as a result of the gunshot wound. Her body was taken to Anne Arundel County Animal Care and Control for a necropsy, police said. Detectives are investigating the incident. The owner was on the scene and was notified of an ongoing investigation.
