The Maine man whose dog was shot and killed by a Louisiana police officer says he’s pleased the officer resigned this week, but he said justice still has not been done.
The resignation of Sulphur, Louisiana, police Officer Brian Thierbach “was half the battle,” said Brandon Carpenter, 28, who is originally from Portland. “There was no reason for him to do what he did.”
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Carpenter, an occasional musician, and a friend have been traveling around the country for much of this year, largely by hopping freight trains. They arrived in Sulphur in late April and got into the back of an empty box truck to get out of the rain.
When someone saw the pair and called police, Thierbach arrived and arrested Carpenter and his traveling companion, Logan Laliberte, originally from Auburn, for trespassing. After they were handcuffed, Carpenter said, Thierbach went to search their belongings, which were next to where Carpenter’s dog, Arzy, was leashed.
Thierbach claimed that Arzy nipped at his foot and he shot the Newfoundland, lab and golden retriever mix. However, an independent witness said the dog didn’t attack the officer.
The Sulphur police chief said in a news release this week that an investigation determined that Thierbach had violated department policies on the use of force, personal conduct and behavior, but the officer resigned from the force before disciplinary action was taken.
Calls to the Sulphur Police Department were not returned Friday.
Carpenter said he saw Arzy’s body at a Louisiana funeral home Friday for the first time since the April 28 incident, and he said his dog was shot between the eyes. Arzy will be cremated this weekend, he said.
Carpenter said he has a local attorney who has been pushing for a criminal investigation of Thierbach by the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office. Carpenter said no one from that department has asked to interview him yet and he hasn’t heard from any local officials or police about the shooting.
The trespassing charges against Laliberte and him are still in place, he said.
Carpenter has since rented an apartment in Louisiana and begins work as a roofer Saturday. He said he intends to stay there to continue pushing for criminal charges against Thierbach and to testify at the trial if the former officer is charged.
Carpenter said he respects most police officers, but Thierbach “needs to feel the repercussions of his actions.”
Edward D. Murphy can be contacted at 791-6465 or at:
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