ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A federal jury has awarded a six-figure verdict to a father and daughter after their dog was shot and killed by a Rochester police officer. The incident occurred on Kosciuszko Street, near Franklin High School, in 2018.
Police were attempting to arrest suspected drug dealers when they ran through backyards, including the one at house number 53. After the suspects were arrested, Officer Javier Algarin returned to the yard, jumping the fence to search for evidence.
Three seconds later, Tesla, a 3-year-old black lab, was let out of the back door. Body camera footage shows Tesla running off the porch and towards Officer Algarin. “Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Hey!” Officer Algarin is heard saying before firing two shots, killing the dog within five seconds.
Elliot Shields, the attorney for the dog owners, a father and his 10-year-old daughter, says the jury verdict shows the jurors believed the officer unlawfully entered the yard, the suspect was already arrested and Officer Algarin could have knocked on the door or used non-lethal means like a baton or pepper spray.
“There was no emergency requiring him to immediately enter my clients’ backyard,” said Elliot Shields of Roth & Roth, LLP.
Officer Algarin also pointed his gun at the dog’s owner. “Leave my property!” Charles Dempsey screamed on the police video. “Get back!” Officer Algarin responded.
In a deposition from July 2022, Officer Algarin stated he was “backtracking,” looking for evidence along the suspects’ path, which he said is part of their training. “The entry into the yard was consistent with your training?” Shields asked during the 2022 deposition. “Backtracking, yes,” Algarin testified.
Algarin testified he was “definitely worried that the dog was going to bite me, attack me.”
Berkeley Brean, News10NBC: “Doesn’t an officer have the right to use force if they feel threatened?”
Elliot Shields: “So that’s what the jury determination was, that even if he felt threatened, he had the time to use non-lethal means.”
The jury found the city’s policy and training on entering property and shooting dogs to be faulty. Police reports indicate at least six cases where Rochester police shot and killed a dog between 2017 and 2019, with reports stating the dogs were attacking victims or charging at police.
During the transcript review, Officer Algarin acknowledged the situation could have been avoided if he had taken 20 seconds to knock on the door and ask for permission to search the backyard.
Shields: “All of this could have been avoided if you had gone to his front door and simply asked his permission to enter his yard, right?”
Algarin: “Yes.”
Shields: “And if you could take it all back and do it over again, that’s the choice you would make?”
Algarin: “Yes.”
The jury awarded $125,000 to the family. The city’s lawyers represented Officer Algarin, who remains an active police officer. The city declined to comment as they consider an appeal. The police union declined to comment as well.
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