PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, Md. — A group of roommates have filed a $16 million lawsuit against Prince George's County after a police officer shot their dog two years ago. The lawsuit claims the dog was left paralyzed and ultimately had to be put down.
In a June 2021 press release, the Prince George's County Police Department (PGPD) said officers were called to the 6900 block of Allison Street for reports of a dog bite. When officers arrived, they located a woman who had been bitten multiple times by what she described as two large dogs. While the woman was taken to an area hospital for help, officers began searching the area for the animals.
PGPD claims that officers knocked on the door of an apartment where they believed the animals lived. When no one answered, they used a key from an employee of the apartment complex to get inside. During this time, a third officer arrived.
Officers say they announced their presence before entering and found several people inside the apartment. While talking to the residents, police say a dog approached the officers in the kitchen and two of the officers shot at the dog while another tased the animal.
The dog, which the lawsuit identifies as a boxer mix named Hennessey, was critically injured in the shooting and later euthanized.
The lawsuit, filed by Erica Umana, Ericka Erazo Sanchez, Dayri Amaya Benitez and Brandon Cuevas, claims that the officers illegally entered the home, that Hennessey never attacked the officers and that the police just panicked after the dog moved toward its primary owner.
"This lawsuit is yet another tragically foreseeable outcome of a failed and biased system of policing in Prince George's County, to which County leadership has continually turned a blind eye," the lawsuit reads.
Additionally, after Hennessey was shot and tased, officers detained the four roommates.
"These officers then further violated Plantiffs' rights by unlawfully pointing guns and tasers at them, threatening physical violence against them, assaulting them, falsely detaining them, and ultimately killing Plaintiff Umana's pet dog unnecessarily, right in front of them," the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit was filed against Prince George's County and PGPD Officers Jason Ball, Joseph Mihanda and Anthony Jackson.
One of the roommates, Sanchez, was sitting on the steps outside the apartment when Ball approached her and asked if she lived there, according to the lawsuit. When she said she wasn't going to answer any of his questions, the lawsuit says the officer ordered her to leave before pulling out his handcuffs and trying to place her under arrest.
The lawsuit goes on to include quotes from Ball, including him reportedly saying if he wasn't wearing a body camera he would have already opened the door to the apartment.
"I used to open them all the time, oh yeah, trust me," Ball allegedly claimed.
Once the officers were inside, with the help of a master key from a maintenance worker, the lawsuit claims that one of the roommates, Benitez, stayed in her room behind a closed door and demanded to see a warrant, but was told they didn't need a warrant because the officers had "probable cause."
The lawsuit further explains how the situation unfolded between Benitez and Officers Ball and Mihanda arguing through her bedroom door. After a short interaction with her roommate, Benitez came out with her hands up. That is when the lawsuit states that Mihanda grabbed Benitez from her bedroom door and tried to push her out of the apartment into the hallway.
While Benitez was put into handcuffs, the lawsuit says she repeatedly asked why she was being arrested and that Mihanda pushed her into the kitchen while yelling, "I'm not the one, I'll knock you out!"
As the struggle continued, more of the roommates arrived, but when they tried to get inside, one of the officers was blocking the door. One of the roommates, Umana, was able to push her way inside, where Ball grabbed her by the arm and reportedly threatened to throw her off the apartment balcony.
The lawsuit says while the tense situation unfolded, Hennessey came out of the bedroom and trotted down the hall to his owner and the officers shot the dog.
"Ms. Sanchez attempted to care for Hennessy, who was writhing in pain on the floor and bleeding all over the carpet in pain," the lawsuit states. "Defendant Ball continued to threaten to tase Ms. Sanchez while she cared for the dying dog."
The roommates claim Ball smirked and alluded to the dog's death being their fault for not answering his questions.
“I see all this blood," Umana said in a press release. "I could see Henny choking on her own blood. We tried to talk to them [the officers], but they wouldn’t listen. I will never forget the officer’s face. He was laughing about the whole situation.”
Following the shooting, PGPD suspended two of the officers and the third was put on administrative leave. PGPD Chief Malik Aziz said the shooting would be "thoroughly investigated."
According to the lawsuit, the actions were deemed appropriate by PGPD supervisors-- a conclusion the lawsuit says completely disregarded the fact that the officers had illegally entered the apartment, violating the Fourth Amendment by being on the premises.
William “Billy” Murphy Jr., a lawyer for the roommates, previously represented the family of Freddie Gray, a Black man whose death in police custody in 2015 led to riots and protests in the city of Baltimore. Murphy said the Prince George's County police officers sued engaged in “outrageously flagrant misconduct.”
“For this to be happening in 2021 blows the mind,” Murphy said. “It is in the DNA of the founding of America that you can’t do this. You can’t get a key to somebody's house and just walk in there without getting a search warrant.”
The filed lawsuit includes a breakdown of various crimes PGPD is accused of ignoring starting with the 1960s.
It ultimately claims that the roommates have been "irreparably damaged" and seeks damages for their mental anguish, emotional pain and suffering, mental stress, post-traumatic stress, depression, anxiety, panic attacks, unexpressed anger, shame, loss of dignity, loss of self-respect, embarrassment, loss of sleep, loss of quality of life, and fear for loss of life, as well as medical expenses, legal fees and other damages.
The lawsuit concludes with the roommates' request of compensatory damages of $16 million, reimbursement to each plaintiff of all costs in connection to the shooting, the expenses of the case and attorneys' fees, pre-and post-judgment interest, punitive damages, and more. Additionally, the roommates want the officers fired and the county to develop and implement a mandatory personal development training module for the police force.
State's Attorney Aisha N. Braveboy released a statement to WUSA9 after the lawsuit was filed, saying:
After reviewing all of the evidence in this matter a determination was made that actions of the officers didn’t generate criminal liability because they were acting in good faith. The Prince George’s County Police Department was notified that our office declined to prosecute this matter.
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