Dog shot during burglary, resulting in death - Hampton, VA

Friday, Oct 19, 2007

The reward for information leading to the arrest of the person who broke into a Hampton home and shot the family's dog has grown to $1,700 after outraged members of the public donated money.

Larry Dorsey, a 52-year-old Hampton car salesman, said his family is still in shock over the Oct. 19 shooting of Bear, a fuzzy, 90-pound chow, Lab and Shepherd mix.

A burglar broke a window to get into the home on Powhatan Parkway that Dorsey shares with his girlfriend, Mary McNish and his 19-year-old granddaughter. The burglar then stole Dorsey's gun and used it to shoot the dog. Nothing else was taken from the house.

Dorsey came home to find Bear bleeding from a gunshot wound above his nose. The dog died at the vet's office early the next day.

He said Bear was cremated on Halloween and that his ashes were taken back to the family home where he had lived for more than seven years.

"He was buried in the spot where he always sat, (in the backyard) looking toward the front yard," Dorsey said. "We're still distraught. We have lost our best friend."

Dorsey said he's been overwhelmed by the public response following appeals in the local media. On top of the $1,000 offered for information by Crime Line, people have donated an additional $700. "We've probably had four or five donations already," Dorsey said.

He's still angry about the crime. "It's just senseless," he said. "I would have rather they'd stolen everything in the house than shot the dog."

Police have not yet made any arrests but say whoever is caught will face charges of burglary, grand larceny and animal cruelty.

Although Bear was like a family member, he could be vicious to strangers. Dorsey believes he is likely to have left scratches and bite marks on the intruder.

Donations to a fund set up for a reward leading to the Bear's killer can be made to any branch of Bank of America, account number 435006870731, under the name of Mary G. McNish, trustee for the Bear McNish fund.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Hampton police at 727-6111 or Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP (1-888-562-5887).

If you have information on this case, please contact:
Crime Line
1-888-LOCK-U-UP

References

• Daily Press - Nov 3, 2007

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