Chicago police on Friday night launched an investigation into what led an off-duty officer to shoot and kill his neighbor's dog.
The officer, an eight-year veteran of the force, said he was out with his young son on the 5800 block of North Oketo Avenue, on the city's far northwest side, when Maximus, a four-month-old pit bull, charged at them.
The dog's owner, Samantha Maglaya, said that wasn't the case.
"He would sit in the yard and listen to the birds. He didn't even bark. He never growled," she said. "He was the biggest baby."
Maglaya rushed Maximus to an animal hospital after the Friday afternoon shooting but the animal couldn't be saved.
"We just drove as fast as possible. I was hoping I could get him there to save him but he died in the car," she said through tears, describing how her pet had been wounded eight times.
Outside the family home, Maglaya's young daughter wore Maximus' collar.
The off-duty officer said he was walking from a house just down the block when the incident unfolded.
"It's supposed to be on a leash. If that dog is on a leash this never happens," the officer said. "[My son] wanted to ride his bike. So he's riding down the sidewalk. As I'm walking down the street the dog comes out of the gangway charging at him."
But neighbors said the boy was nearly a block away during the shooting. And they say Maximus never even barked.
A police sergeant interviewed the officer, who said he's on vacation. The sergeant also met with the family who owned the dog. They say the sergeant issued them two citations after the shooting.
The case was turned over to the Independent Police Review Authority.
