OCEANSIDE—Police officers shot and killed a dog after the owner refused to restrain the dog that charged at officers.
Early Monday at approximately 2:50 a.m. officers responded to a radio call of a suspicious subject who was sitting in a chair by the front door of a residence in the 700 block of Morse Street.
Officers arrived on scene and observed a person, later identified as Armando Castillo,26, sitting in front of the residence with his unrestrained dog. Castillo is a documented street gang member who did not live at this location, or in the neighborhood. When officers exited their vehicle in the street, Castillo’s unrestrained dog charged the officers. The officers told Castillo to control his dog, but he told officers that his dog was just protecting him. The dog charged at the officers a second time. One officer deployed his taser, but was unsuccessful at immobilizing the dog. Officers told
Castillo to come towards them in the street in an effort to avoid being bitten by the dog. He continued to be non-compliant and did not follow the officers’ instructions. As officers approached Castillo, the dog charged the officers once again. One officer discharged his duty weapon and killed the dog after fearing his safety was in jeopardy. Castillo was subsequently arrested without incident for obstructing a police officer and under the influence of a controlled substance. He was later transported to the Vista Detention Facility for further processing.
