Plaintiff:
Samantha Maglaya
Incident date:
05/17/2013
Location:
5825 N. Oketo Ave.
Allegations:
Maglaya brought her 5-year-old daughter, S.R., home from school one afternoon, and S.R. took their 19-week-old puppy, Max, outside to play. Max weighed about 45 pounds and had never attacked anyone. Max ran around to the front lawn, and S.R. ran after him to return him to the backyard. From about three feet away, Officer Kumiga shot Max eight times, killing the puppy in front of S.R. Kumiga claimed the puppy was chasing his son, who was riding a bicycle down the block, but there was no child on a bicycle near Maglaya's home. Shortly after, other police officers arrived and incorrectly fined Maglaya's husband for having the puppy off-leash and for not having a dog tag. The husband was not Max's owner, but was present at the scene. A few days before the incident, Kumiga had intimidated Maglaya's husband by threatening to shoot Max if Kumiga saw him off the leash again. Officer McGlade, who arrived shortly after the incident, told Maglaya's landlord that Maglaya's family should not have had the puppy and should not live in their neighborhood because of their race and Section 8 housing status. McGlade told the landlord that Maglaya should not have a “nigger dog,” referred to Maglaya as a “spic” and asked why “spics” like her were allowed in the neighborhood. When Maglaya went to a police station, the police refused to record her complaint or take her statement.