Behavior & Ballistics: The Caselaw of Law Enforcement Conflicts with Dogs

Our nation stands at an inflection point regarding instances of law enforcement agents engaging in excessive force.

The Animal Legal Defense Fund has long worked on this issue within our sphere of expertise: animal law. In that area, we address means of reducing both individual and systemic causes of excessive force. We also identify legal arguments that acknowledge and honour victims of excessive force — as well as hold perpetrators accountable. In this, we are guided by our belief that justice must be available to all.

We know, however, that excessive force directly impacts human victims, and that the pain and outrage generated stem from a different history and context than do our cases — one involving unequal treatment often based upon the color of one’s skin. These human cases are rightly the current focus of our nation’s attention. Indeed, for many the impact and implications can neither be avoided nor ignored.

Given this, the Animal Legal Defense Fund has decided to postpone this webinar Behaviour & Ballistics: The Caselaw of Law Enforcement Conflicts with Dogs.

To those of you who planned to attend, we hope you will understand and attend when we are able to reschedule.

To our counterparts in other legal areas working to reduce and address excessive force, please know that to the extent our work on the issue within the animal law sphere can be of use, we are at the ready.

Too often, encounters between law enforcement officers and dogs take a tragic turn, with the animals subject to deadly force. Join Animal Legal Defense Fund Senior Staff Attorney David B. Rosengard in an exploration of how courts adjudicate these cases. During this webinar, we will not only discuss how judicial opinions have shaped the legal response to these incidents, but also what those responses imply about the position of animals within the legal system, your constitutional rights, and best practices to set both officers and animals up for success – as well as how this informs issues of officer use of force against humans.

POSTPONED. Please check back for rescheduled date.