Jury finds New Orleans police officer who shot and killed puppy violated rights but has immunity

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A jury in federal court ruled that a New Orleans police officer who shot and killed a puppy had violated its owners’ constitutional rights but was shielded from punishment under qualified immunity because of his government role, according to the plaintiffs’ attorney William Most.

The jury awarded $10,000 in damages for emotional distress to the puppy’s owners, to be paid by the city, Most said. An additional $400 was awarded for the rescue dog’s market value.

The jury found that the city held a degree of liability tied to the officer’s actions but was not ultimately responsible for the killing of Apollo the puppy, Most said. The jury ruled the officer violated state laws of negligence and wrongful destruction of property. The jury also found the owners and Burmaster’s police partner had some liability in the dog’s death, Most added.

“We are so glad to have justice for Apollo,” Most said in a text message. “We hope that this trial will achieve lasting change in the way the New Orleans Police Department trains its officers to handle animals they meet in the field.”

The city and police department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Derrick Burmaster, the police officer, declined to comment.

The civil lawsuit arose after the 16-week old, 22-pound (10-kilogram) Catahoula Leopard puppy ran up to Burmaster when he and a police partner entered the couple’s yard in response to a report of a domestic disturbance in 2021.

Burmaster, who has said he feared Apollo would bite him in the genitals, fired three shots at the puppy with one hand while covering his crotch with the other, court records show. Another larger adult dog had barked and moved toward Burmaster’s colleague, who stepped out of the yard before it reached him.

Police body camera shows Apollo died in the arms of his distraught owners, who later were diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, according to their lawyer.

“How could you shoot a puppy?” screamed Apollo’s owner, Julia Barecki-Brown, immediately after the incident, footage shows. “This is the love of our lives.”

In footage, Burmaster repeatedly apologized but also asked why they had let the dogs out.

Multiple internal police investigations found Burmaster’s actions violated department policies. The department’s Use of Force Review Board unanimously ruled the shooting was unjustified. Police investigators stated that Apollo did not pose a threat.

Burmaster did not consider alternative options such as kicking the dog or using a Taser, investigators noted. In violation of department protocol, he was not wearing body armor or equipped with a baton. This is the second time he has fatally shot a dog, court records show.

Apollo’s owners, Barecki-Brown and her husband Derek Brown, sued Burmaster and the City of New Orleans in 2022. In July 2023, after a federal judge ruled that the lawsuit could move to jury trial, department leadership cleared Burmaster of wrongdoing for his use of force during the final step in the internal review process.

The city’s Independent Police Monitor Stella Cziment criticized the department’s reversal and told The Associated Press that she disagreed with the decision to clear Burmaster of misconduct in the aftermath of a civil lawsuit.

“The claim that the NOPD ‘reversed’ in response to the civil lawsuit is spurious,” the City of New Orleans said in a Wednesday statement. “Prior to the filing of the lawsuit, the NOPD had not reached a final decision regarding disciplinary action for Officer Burmaster.”

The city noted that Sgt. David Duplantier, a police training academy instructor, issued a report on Oct. 12, 2021 — after the first two internal reviews — finding that Burmaster “acted properly” because he believed he was at risk of imminent harm.

Long-standing federal oversight of the city’s police department put in place after a decades-long history of misconduct and culture of impunity is in the process of winding down. Department leaders have sought to reassure the public that they have built a system of transparency and accountability.

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Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.