One of the Holleman's family dog was shot and killed by a Montgomery county investigator leaving them to question if it was really necessary.
The family's backyard looks more like a petting zoo. Their country home in Woodlawn is perfect for animals including their beloved dogs, who are a part of the family.
Bailey was a 6-year-old pit bull and always made it a point to greet visitors, but on Monday her life ended.
"No good deed goes unpunished, that saying is true," homeowner Melissa Holleman said.
A few days prior Holleman made a call to authorities after a neighborhood child ran to them for help. "He was accusing his parents of abusing him so I called the police and called child protective services," she explained.
On Monday afternoon Investigator Fred Smith arrived unannounced to follow up on that call. Bailey was in the yard.
"I guess he started walking up my driveway and shot her, shot her in the head," Holleman said.
Holleman's next door neighbors arrived home shortly after Bailey was killed. "I looked over and I saw Bailey lying across the driveway and I told my husband, that's not right. So we got out we started yelling, Bailey, Bailey," Angie Williams explained.
They noticed an unmarked SUV at the front of the driveway and went to investigate, that's when Inv. Smith got out of his vehicle.
"My husband looked at him said, man did you have to shoot her? [He said] 'Whoa whoa whoa I didn't do it. When I pulled up she was like this, I'm trying to figure out what's going on,'" Williams explained.
The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office released this statement about the incident:
"Upon arrival Smith honked his horn and scanned the front yard for dogs. As he exited his vehicle and approached the home, three dogs ran from the back yard and advanced at Smith. As he attempted to return to his vehicle, one of the dogs, a pit bull, attempted to grab Smith. Fearing for his safety, Smith discharged his firearm.
Immediately after the incident Inv Smith did contact central dispatch over the radio to report he had shot a dog and ask for his supervisor to arrive on scene. As understandable, at the scene emotions were running high from the neighbors and pet owners. To prevent the situation for escalating further, Inv Smith did not disclose he shot the dog, instead his supervisor conveyed the details of the incident to the pet owners."
Documents also show a shell casing was found about 30 feet from Bailey's body, making it hard for those involved to believe Smith is telling the truth. "I'm physically sick from this. He seems like a very nice man, but I don't know. He looked us dead in our eyes and lied to us," said Williams.
"I would like to hear a sorry from him. I don't understand why everybody is apologizing for him but he hasn't apologized," Holleman said. “We’re good people and they took something away from us that is…she’s not replaceable."
The Holleman's have hired an attorney and plan on taking legal action. The sheriff's office said the investigation was ongoing.
