A vigil will be kept in Derby this weekend in memory of 2 dogs that were shot dead by cops previously this month. Marshall and Millions passed away on Sunday, May 7 after officers were contacted us to reports of a female being assaulted by a dog in Tower Hamlets, in London.
The occurrence has actually caused a profusion of anger from campaigners who state the dogs did not require to be shot. Videos of the occurrence have actually been seen 10s of countless times online.
A man was jailed at the scene and charged with being the owner of a dog that was alarmingly out of control and remaining in ownership of a dog whilst disqualified from owning or keeping a dog. Louie Turnbull, aged 46, of no set address has actually pleaded guilty to the 2nd charge however rejected the very first.
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Now, vigils are being held nationwide to raise awareness of the incident. A vigil will be held in Derby city centre on Sunday, June 4, with organiser Cat Hope saying she wants to be a “voice for the animals”.
She says that the dogs should have been taken away and assessed properly before a decision was taken on what would happen to them. Cat, from Oakwood, said: “We feel very passionately that the action taken by the police that day was uncalled for.
“If a dog is mauling someone then you can understand why they need to be destroyed however I don’t see a dog that’s out of control in those videos. It was the easy option.
“We want the truth to come out. It’s got to come out. I just think if the proper animal control people were there it could have been done another way.”
Cat, 47, who owns three dogs, Romanian crossbreed Bella, cross poodle Dougle and Turkish Kangal Dixie, added: “It’s not a protest, it’s a vigil. We will be reading poetry and talking to people about what happened.
“Derbyshire police are aware. We’re not there to cause trouble, we just want to show our support and be the voice for the animals.”
Police were called to reports of a dog attack in London on May 7. A woman suffered an injury to her leg in the occurrence but did not require hospital treatment.
A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said: “As part of their enquiries to safeguard the public, local officers supported by specialists from Dog Support Unit and Specialist Firearms Command, spoke to a male in the vicinity who was in possession of the two dogs.
“Following this interaction, which failed to bring the dogs satisfactorily under control, cops firearms officers destroyed the 2 dogs at the scene. The owner of the dogs was jailed at the scene. Police Taser was released. He was nabbed and was later on charged as above.
“Two public problems forwarded from the IOPC to the MPS were willingly referred back to the IOPC on Wednesday, 10 May. The IOPC have actually released an independent examination. The officers worried have actually been notified. They stay on functional responsibilities.”
The Derby vigil will be kept in the Market Place on Sunday, June 4 from 1pm.
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