A New Orleans police officer who fatally shot a puppy will face a jury lawsuit trial
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A New Orleans police officer who shot and killed a puppy while responding to a call is set to go to trial Monday in a federal lawsuit filed by the dog's owners.
The Catahoula Leopard dog ran up to Officer Derrick Burmaster after he entered the yard in response to a report of a domestic disturbance in 2021. The department's internal investigators said the dog did not pose a threat.
Multiple internal investigations by the New Orleans Police Department found that the lethal shooting of the 18-week-old, 22-pound (10-kilogram) rescue dog Apollo violated department policies and was 'unjustified.' But after Apollo's owners sued Burmaster and the city of New Orleans in 2022, department leadership in July 2023 cleared him of wrongdoing for his use of force during the final step in the review.
New Orleans Independent Police Monitor Stella Cziment, whose office has closely followed the case, said that she saw no reason — save the civil lawsuit — for the department's reversal.
'I don't see how it aligns with policy; I don't understand how he was exonerated and I disagree with that finding,' Cziment said.
Longstanding federal oversight of the city's police department put in place after a decades-long history of misconduct and culture of impunity is in the process of winding down. Department leaders have sought to reassure the public that they have built a system of transparency and accountability.
The dog's owners, Derek Brown and Julia Barecki-Brown, say Burmaster violated their constitutional rights by shooting Apollo on their property 'in the absence of an objectively legitimate and imminent threat.' They are seeking damages for emotional distress after they held Apollo in their arms as he died. They declined to comment via their attorney.
Burmaster and the New Orleans Police Department declined to comment, citing pending litigation. In court filings, Burmaster's attorneys argue he was acting within the scope of his duty as a police officer when he fired the gun.
A fatal encounter
On the evening of April 10, 2021, Burmaster and his partner responded to a nighttime call that a woman had been screaming inside a home in the city's Lower Garden District.
Body camera footage reviewed by The Associated Press, police investigation records and court documents detail what happened next.
Burmaster approached the gated yard making what he described as 'kissing noises' to assess whether any dogs were present and said aloud there were none.
Soon after the officers entered through the gate, two dogs — Apollo and another larger dog owned by the family — came running while barking. The larger dog approached Burmaster's partner, who exited back through the gate. Apollo moved toward Burmaster, who covered his crotch with one hand and fired three shots with the other.
The owners of the dogs then ran out from the home, screaming at the officers.
'Oh my god, what did you do, what did you do,' Barecki-Brown shouted. 'No! No! No!'
'That's a baby, that's a puppy,' she continued, sobbing hysterically.
Burmaster identified himself as a police officer, apologized repeatedly, and asked them why they let the dogs out.
'I made kissy noises — to get, if there was a dog behind this fence,' Burmaster said.
'How could you shoot a puppy?' Barecki-Brown responded. 'This is the love of our lives.'
Reviews of Burmaster's decision to fire
Burmaster repeatedly told investigators he fired his gun because he was afraid Apollo would bite him in the genitals. In 2012, Burmaster also fatally shot another dog while grabbing his crotch for protection, police records show. There have been 11 fatal shootings of animals between 2012 and 2022 by New Orleans police officers, according to police records shared in court filings.
During a hearing held by the department's Use of Force Review Board — which unanimously ruled Burmaster was not justified in firing his weapon — Deputy Superintendent Christopher Goodly stated 'the smaller dog posed no threat.'
Investigators noted Burmaster did not consider non-lethal options such as kicking the dog or using his Taser. In violation of department policy, he was not carrying his baton or wearing his body armor.
Sgt. David Duplantier of the department's training academy later testified that he felt Burmaster had acted properly under difficult circumstances, court records show.
Burmaster's partner was sent to the hospital to treat a minor wound caused by the firing of Burmaster's gun.
Burmaster trained other field officers in the department at the time. In the five years leading up to the incident, he used force 11 times and all instances were found to be justified by the department, according to court records.
Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick acknowledged in a deposition that she signed off on the decision to exonerate Burmaster without reviewing the bodycam footage. The officer received an 'oral reprimand' for not being properly equipped.
Apollo was a Catahoula, a medium-sized breed known for hunting and tracking prowess and is Louisiana's state dog. The United Kennel Club, a global dog registry, describes Catahoulas as 'affectionate, gentle and loyal family companions.'
___
Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
St. Pete consignment shop abruptly closes, thousands of dollars in designer goods missing
The Brief Retreat Consignment store closed without warning. Sellers who had their goods on consignment are now missing. The entire store has been completely cleared out. ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Thousands of dollars' worth of designer goods are missing from a St. Petersburg consignment shop. The store, Retreat Consignment, abruptly closed without any warning and now several sellers want to know where their stuff is and how to get it back. What we know Detectives spoke with one of the sellers on Monday. He's out thousands of dollars in art pieces. Dozens more on social media are missing designer shoes and bags worth thousands. The shop is empty, and the store owners are nowhere to be found. Follow FOX 13 on YouTube Rich Goren has been collecting original art pieces for years. "These are just two of the examples of them, but you can see the high quality," Goren said. He's sold several on consignment at the Retreat consignment shop on Central Avenue in St. Pete. READ: St. Pete man sailing over 5,500 miles for Ronald McDonald House Charities "We would be in the store pretty often and we would see that our stuff was still there," Goren said. Last week he noticed the store was completely empty. His stuff was nowhere to be found. Two art pieces and two pairs of designer shoes worth about $17,000 altogether are now missing. "I hope for the best, maybe sitting in a warehouse and they want to return everything. That's fine. That would be the best case scenario. But the fact that you have a business, people entrusting you with their valuables and you just take off. Come on. That's not great," Goren said. What they're saying The stores yelp page is now filled with reviews from frustrated sellers with similar stories. MORE: St. Pete approves projects to make sewer system more resilient "I am BESIDE myself that they closed their doors and took off with all of my items," one reviewer wrote. "There has been no communication as to how they are going to get their clients items, and money owed, back to them," another reviewer wrote. "One of the employees reached out to me, I won't say her name, but she said, oh my gosh, I feel awful, we all do, we haven't paid, and it was unexpected. We thought they might sell the store, but we also thought they would be transparent about everything. There's no reason for them not to be calling," Goren said. Goren reported it to the St. Pete Police Department on Monday. Detectives are encouraging any other sellers who also had their items taken to reach out. Goren has tried to reach the shop owners multiple times, but his calls and emails have all went unanswered. "It's a civil case if they have it, and they're not returning it quickly enough and so that's where that lands. So I don't know what it is. I just know that we just always try to do right by people and I expect that they seem like really good people to us but this isn't looking good," Goren said. READ: More affordable housing coming to South St. Pete with Habitat for Humanity partnership Timeline The store closed sometime in March. Goren has tried to contact the owners multiple times via email and phone, but his calls went unanswered. Sellers who had items not returned are encouraged to file a report with St. Pete Police. The Source The information in this story was gathered by FOX 13's Jordan Bowen. WATCH FOX 13 NEWS: STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 13 TAMPA: Download the FOX Local app for your smart TV Download FOX Local mobile app:Apple |Android Download the FOX 13 News app for breaking news alerts, latest headlines Download the SkyTower Radar app Sign up for FOX 13's daily newsletter


Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
Martha's Vineyard residents fume over arrests of illegal immigrants in liberal enclave
Martha's Vineyard residents are unhappy with the Trump administration deporting illegal immigrants from their liberal enclave, The Washington Post reported this week. The community has been reeling since Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officers arrested dozens of illegal immigrants in a recent raid, according to the report. "It's bullying," one Martha's Vineyard resident, Charlie Giordano, told the Post. "I don't know how many are illegal or legal, I don't give a s---. But I do care about how they're treated." The Washington Post's story on the Martha's Vineyard ICE raid comes as the federal law enforcement agency has been the focus of riots in downtown Los Angeles for the past several days. ICE agents carried out operations at businesses across Los Angeles on Friday, sparking protests and clashes outside multiple locations that grew so chaotic that President Donald Trump ordered National Guard troops into the city, followed by several hundred U.S. Marines, to restore order. Some California officials, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, have accused the administration of exacerbating the situation. As the Post reported, ICE agents performed a massive sting throughout Massachusetts in late May that resulted in nearly 1,500 arrests. Forty of those arrests happened on the two islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. The arrests have ignited "fear among undocumented workers who form the backbone of the workforce here just as the busy summer season gets underway," the outlet reported. "After the raid, many immigrants panicked and shuttered themselves indoors. Many spoke to The Washington Post only on the condition of anonymity because they fear being targeted the next time ICE arrives on the island. They recounted taking extraordinary measures that day and in the week after to protect themselves," the Post said, adding that the liberal community on the island had been shaken as well. "The arrests hit a nerve in a liberal enclave known for welcoming everyone: presidents — former president Barack Obama has an oceanfront property here — LGBTQ+ activists, racial minorities, celebrities and a large cluster of immigrants from Brazil," the paper noted. One Brazilian resident, who admitted to the Post he is undocumented, warned that the local economy will crater because of the arrests and deportations. The anonymous man, who also owns three businesses in Martha's Vineyard, said, "The money is just going to stop flowing. The U.S. is only losing in pushing us out." The Island has become a safe haven for many illegal immigrants from Brazil in recent decades as they fled their home country due to hyperinflation and other economic problems. According to the outlet, many came over on work or tourist visas, but ended up staying in the country. The Post reported that these immigrants "established businesses offering food and cleaning services that are now crucial to daily life in a resort town. Today there are few restaurant menus here that don't offer Brazilian-inspired options like croquettes or traditional cheesy bread." It noted just how prevalent the Portuguese language is within the community as well. An anonymous Brazilian woman, who owns a business and has raised three children on the island, told the paper, "The American people love us because we work so hard to help the community prosper and grow." "This was a safe place," she added. Residents said that the recent arrests "felt arbitrary and included valued community members who had committed no crime," according to the Post. A Brazilian pastor on the island told the outlet, "ICE would come here to get criminals and that is good. But the way they did it now, that was not it." However, the paper acknowledged ICE's recent statement disputing those claims. According to the agency, more than half of all the illegal immigrants detained in Massachusetts last month had a criminal record. ICE did not immediately reply to Fox News Digital's request for comment. Martha's Vineyard was at the center of the nation's immigration debate in 2022, when Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered 50 illegal immigrants detained in Florida to be flown to the island. DeSantis was attempting to highlight the record influx of migrants at the southern border.


Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
China's Escalating Espionage War Against The U.S.
Concerns over China's espionage campaign against the United States are growing following recent reports highlighting issues of espionage, agro-terrorism, and artificial intelligence. Most recently, China has faced scrutiny after the arrest of three Chinese nationals, including one who attempted to smuggle illegal biological materials into the U.S. from a university in Wuhan, China. Former diplomat and senior advisor with the Center for International Studies (CIS), Jim Lewis, joins the Rundown to discuss China's threat to the United States and how they are targeting America on multiple fronts. At the end of the last fiscal year in 2024, the US Army exceeded its recruitment goal. Now in 2025, our army says they've met their goal four months early. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth credits President Trump for this uptick in military recruitment, saying he had initially called it the 'Trump bump' but now sees it's really a tsunami of young folks who want to work 'under a President they know has their back.' Navy veteran and The Heritage Foundation senior fellow Brent Sadler joins to unpack what could be fueling this military recruitment surge. Plus, commentary from the host of 'Tomi Lahren is Fearless on Outkick,' Tomi Lahren. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit