They Shoot Dogs, Don't They?

In Maryland, a federal police officer shoots a dog at a public park and gets away with it. Radley Balko reacts:

I’ m certain that if I (or anyone else who isn’t a cop) pulled out a gun and shot a dog at a dog park in a residential area, I’d be facing criminal charges. And rightly so. Even if the dogs were fighting, there’s no justification for shooting one of them, particularly around other dogs and people. It’s reckless, trigger-happy, and dangerous. It’s also safe to say that if this had been anyone other than a cop, the local police department would have no qualms about releasing his name to the press.

This sort of thing happens with startling frequency in Maryland. And elsewhere too. Mercifully, a backlash is underway.