Albany Officer Bitten in Fatal Dog Shooting Not Seriously Hurt

There was no apparent puncture wound or other serious injury to an Albany police officer who was bitten by a dog in the Albany Bulb encounter that included a fatal shooting of the dog by police on Monday, a city spokeswoman said today, Wednesday.

In an email response to a request from Patch, City Clerk Nicole Almaguer said, "The officer that was bitten was treated by paramedics following the incident. When attacked, he was in plain clothes wearing a leather jacket. The jacket surface was punctured. The officer’s arm had a small bruise; fortunately, the bite did not appear to break the skin."

The city's initial account of the Monday incident did not indicate whether the officer suffered injuries.

Two male officers were patrolling on the Bulb – where an estimated 50-60 or so people live in makeshift shelters and tents – about 8 a.m. Monday "when when they were confronted by two apparently vicious dogs on a trail at the south end of the Bulb," Almaguer told Patch on Monday.

No one else was in sight, and the officers called out to anyone who might be in the area to take control of the dogs, Almaguer said. 

"Both dogs moved to attack the officers, with one dog managing to get a bite on one of the officer’s arms," she said. "Both officers discharged their sidearms, critically injuring one of the dogs - the second dog then ran away."

Bulb resident Amber Whitson and Jill Posener, founder of the non-profit Paw Fund, said the 15-month-old dog was named Amore and belonged to a resident of the Bulb. 

Both expressed shock and grief over Amore's death, saying he was a sweet, unaggressive dog who had not been known to show hostility toward people before. At the same time, Posener said, Amore's owner had not heeded repeated urgings for Bulb dwellers to keep their dogs under control.

A new Facebook page established today, "Amoré was a good boy," takes issue with the city's account.

Albany police have been issuing warnings and making preparations to implement a series of recent City Council decisions to clear the longstanding illegal encampments from the Bulb so that it can become part of McLaughlin Eastshore State Park.

Related article:

• Albany Bulb Dog Fatally Shot by Albany Police

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