Woodstock Man Convicted of Killing His Dog

A McHenry County jury has found a 57-year-old Woodstock man guilty on two felony charges for fatally shooting his 3-year-old yellow Labrador retriever after the family pet bit him in May of 2008.

Jurors deliberated nearly three hours Wednesday before convicting Kirk Locher on charges of aggravated cruelty and reckless discharge of a firearm.

Prosecutors said Locher had been drinking heavily before he shot the dog, named Breeze, in his kitchen as it laid a few feet away from his wife.  Police later found Breeze in a garbage can, the Daily Herald reported.

During closing arguments Wednesday afternoon, Locher’s attorney argued that the shooting was a legal euthanasia, according to the Northwest Herald.

Locher and his attorney declined to comment as he left the McHenry County courthouse after the verdict.

He faces a maximum sentence of one to three years in prison, or probation, when he is sentenced Aug. 25.