Dog Shot and Killed By Melrose Police Officer During Response to Domestic Disturbance

Editor's note: This article was updated on Wednesday, June 15 at 7:27 p.m.

A dog was shot and killed by after they responded to a domestic disturbance on Oakland Road early Tuesday morning.

Police say the dog charged them when they responded to 21 Oakland St. around 2 a.m. on Tuesday, but Virginia Clancy, 69, claims it didn’t happen that way. Clancy’s son, John—who said he is 37, lives upstairs from his mother at that address and is the dog's owner—said it was an 11-month-old Old English Bulldog.

"They said, 'Just get out of the way, we’re going to shoot,' and I said, 'You have to be kidding, the dog won't hurt you,'" Virginia Clancy said. "They said, 'Get out of the way, we’re going to shoot him.' We went to grab him and they fired a shot ... I was right beside the dog. Right in the street.

"They were trying to say that the dog threatened him and pushed him against the wall," she continued. "As I remember it, the cruisers were parked on the other side of the street. They were standing right in the middle of the street and had their guns drawn. He never barked or was aggressive or anything."

Sobbing on the phone, John Clancy said, "They opened fire on an 11-month-old puppy, right in front of my mother. They almost hit my mother, too."

Melrose Police Chief Mike Lyle, in contrast, said that while the woman was present, "the exact distance, I don't know, but I do know she wasn't holding the dog, wasn't within a couple of feet. She was a distance away.

"In an emergency situation, there is no safe distance," Lyle continued. "The officers were in fear for their safety and took appropriate action."

Lyle said that Melrose Animal Control Officer Diane Kurkjian responded to a call for a loose dog two weeks ago in the area; had Clancy register the two dogs in the home at that time; and confirmed that the dog shot and killed Tuesday morning was an Old English Bulldog.

According to a press release from Lyle, when two officers responded to the residence and knocked, Virginia Clancy opened the front door, allowing one of at least two dogs to exit the residence.

"The dog exited the residence in an aggressive manner," the press release stated. "Officers attempted to retreat, while ordering the female resident to gain control of the dog. The dog continued to advance towards the officers in an aggressive manner, as the owner was unsuccessful in controlling the dog.

"Several more commands directed to the female followed without success forcing the officers backwards toward a stone wall, eliminating any alternative means of egress," the release continued. "With both officers fearing for their safety, one officer discharged a single round from his service weapon, stopping the dog. Both officers were unharmed in this incident. The dog died on scene."

Lyle said, “Although the matter is still under investigation, all reports indicate the officers acted appropriately and within their authority."

The domestic disturbance police were responding to involved John Clancy and his nephew and occurred earlier about 12:30 a.m. Police said they responded to the home at about 1:30 a.m. after John Clancy's nephew told them John Clancy assaulted him.

Lyle said that Clancy faces charges of two counts of simple domestic assault and battery; two counts of threatening to commit a crime (murder); and one count of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

"There is a warrant in hand, we did speak to him, asked him to turn himself in, and spoke to his attorney this morning about Mr. Clancy turning himself in—that didn’t occur," Lyle said.

Clancy said he wasn’t home when police arrived because he first left to find his nephew, who ran off after the fight, and then to seek medical treatment for facial wounds he allegedly suffered in the fight.

Lyle said that Clancy told policy he would be going to Melrose-Wakefield Hospital for treatment, so officers waited at the emergency room. After Clancy did not appear at the hospital, officers responded to his home on Oakland Street.