NORFOLK, Va. — Four pit bulls escaped a collapsed backyard fence on Lind Street in Norfolk on Sunday, chasing two adults and causing minor injuries. One dog was killed and another was injured after a neighbor opened fire. Now, the dogs' owner is questioning whether deadly force was necessary.
Kwini Scott, who says she owns the dogs, says the animals were not aggressive and believes they were simply chasing one of the adults because they thought she was playing.
"They're not vicious, they're not aggressive. They was trying to play," Scott said.
Scott says the dogs escaped because of a collapsed backyard fence — not because they were intentionally roaming the neighborhood.
"It was an accident," Scott said.
Scott says one of the dogs, 6-month-old Gigi, was killed. Another dog, Rain, was shot and injured. Scott questions whether the level of force used by the neighbor was justified.
"Explain that why is deadly force used when it wasn't no deadly force from the dogs? That's a question I'd like answered," Scott said.
"Why he shoot them so many times he could've shot in the air they would've ran. They ran they were scared they came home," Scott said.
Norfolk Commonwealth's Attorney Ramin Fatehi says Virginia's self-defense law applies equally whether a threat comes from a human or an animal.
"There's no difference in whether the threat is to you personally or to another person but it has to be a threat of serious bodily injury or death that is immediate and at the point somebody is allowed legally to use legal force," Fatehi said.
Norfolk police describe the incident as "a vicious animal incident." Once the investigation is complete, the case will be presented to the Commonwealth's Attorney's Office, which will decide whether criminal charges will be filed.
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