A Jacksonville woman is facing backlash from her community after she reportedly shot her neighbor’s dog while it attacked her smaller dog in her driveway. The incident occurred earlier this month.
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April Bell explained she has been intimidated by her neighbors on social media and in her community after shooting their dog Loki on October 5. A new video of the incident shows why Bell made the drastic decision to shoot Loki despite her neighbor claiming the attack could’ve been stopped differently and wants to file criminal charges. Bell explained to News4Jax that her Shih Tzu, Shorty, ran out of her garage to confront Loki, a mixed foxed terrier, approaching the property after it slipped out of its leash while being walked by its owner’s friend.
“Shorty sustained a front left leg fracture and multiple, multiple, deep puncture wounds. The dog just had Shorty by the throat and just slinging him like a rag doll,” Bell said. The video shows Bell swinging a bag near the dog’s head before grabbing a broomstick from the garage and poking Loki so it could let Shorty go.
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She further explained that Loki would not let go of Shorty so she didn’t have a choice but to go in her car and grab a handgun to stop the attack.
“The gentleman who was walking the dog — he was trying, he was wailing on the dog. And I told the gentleman to move, I said, ‘Sir move, I have to shoot your dog, I have to shoot the dog.’ He moved. You know, I was mindful of my surroundings, making sure no one else was around. I tried to aim the gun a little bit lower towards the ground, and took a deep breath and fired a shot.”
Loki’s owner, John Roberts, said the bullet went in and out of his ribs, which led him to be euthanized. He feels that Bell should’ve used a different method to stop the attack and didn’t deserve to be shot to death. “It’s reckless, end of the day, it’s reckless, and it irritates me she would do this. There was a water hose on the side of the house, the same distance away from where the gun is,” he said.
He also expressed concern about why Bell didn’t contact his family about Loki’s wellbeing and believes the incident needs to be filed as a crime. Bell noted that the family made a memorial in her front yard when she wasn’t home and she feels intimidated by their actions. She says the situation is unfortunate but doesn’t regret her decision.
“When a dog is in a frenzy like that and not listening to the dog walker, and the dog walker has tried to do what he could do, there wasn’t anything else to do.”
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said that the case was referred to the State Attorney’s Office and advised there were no criminal violations.
