Thread: Police Chief Tries To Shoot Dog; Shoots Owner Instead; Ignores Victim; Gets Sworn In

Police Chief Tries To Shoot Dog; Shoots Owner Instead; Ignores Victim; Gets Sworn In

July 3, 2013 by Ben Bullard

A North Carolina woman was hit by a ricocheting bullet meant for her dog, after Winston-Salem police chief in-waiting Barry Rountree got scared of the dog last week and tried to shoot it.

The woman, Tamara Whitt, was shot by Rountree as he was responding to a 911 call alleging a man with a gun was roaming the neighborhood, aiming the weapon at people.

Evidently there was such a man: Rountree. Police said after he and other officers arrived in the area to investigate, Whitt’s dog approached them in a “threatening manner.” Rountree got scared of the dog and tried to shoot it, but the .40 caliber bullet bounced off the pavement and hit Whitt in the leg.



According to Whitt – who described her pet’s behavior throughout the ordeal as “very passive” – Rountree’s reaction to her injury was to walk across the street and have a cell phone conversation, then cross back over to ask her if she was alright.

“He did not come to me. He backed away,” she said. “He walked across the street over there by that car over there and he was on his phone … and I told the SBI [State Bureau of Investigation] he did not come to me.”

Whitt hasn’t had the bullet removed; doctors have told her the procedure would be too dangerous.

At the time of the shooting, Rountree was in line to be sworn in as the new Winston-Salem chief of police. He was placed on administrative leave after the shooting, but has since been cleared of any wrongdoing by Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O’Neill. Rountree was sworn in as chief of police on June 30.

The dog, a boxer named Lebrone, is still alive, but remains in the custody of Forsyth County Animal Control.

http://personalliberty.com/2013/07/0...gets-sworn-in/

Incoming police chief shoots woman while trying to kill her dog

By David Edwards
Thursday, June 27, 2013 9:16 EDT
Video at the Page Link:


Topics: Barry Rountree ♦ police chief ♦ Tamara Whitt
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A woman in North Carolina says that the incoming police chief in one town did not react to provide immediate assistance after accidentally shooting her while trying to kill her allegedly aggressive dog.

Investigators said that Winston-Salem Assistant Chief Barry Rountree was responding to a dangerous weapon call on Wednesday to assist another officer when he encountered a dog behaving in an “aggressive manner.”

Rountree attempted to shoot the dog, but missed and the bullet ricocheted off the pavement, striking Tamara Whitt in the leg.

“He did not come to me. He backed away,” Whitt told WGHP. He just backed up and I saw the cell phone come out … he walked across the street over there by that car over there and he was on his phone … and I told the SBI [State Bureau of Investigation] he did not come to me.”

Whitt said that she couldn’t understand why Rountree would take the chance of firing his weapon while she was standing so close to the “very passive” dog.

Doctors told Whitt that the 40 caliber bullet would have to remain in her leg because it was too dangerous to remove.

Rountree was placed on administrative leave, and the SBI was following its standard procedure of conducting an investigation into all police shootings. The city, however, insisted that Rountree’s swearing-in would go on as scheduled on Sunday. Assistant Chief David Clayton will temporarily serve as chief until Rountree is cleared for duty.

The dog was reportedly unharmed, but in the custody of Forsyth County Animal Control.

“I just hope that the SBI does a good investigation and really sees if he really deserve to be our police [chief] because I honestly thought that was a rookie mistake,” Whitt observed.

Watch this video from WGHP, broadcast June 26, 2013.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/06/2...-kill-her-dog/