Lawsuit argues Sturgeon did not investigate officer who shot blind dog, paid officer $16k in settlement
Mitchell Kaminski
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A federal civil rights lawsuit filed by a Sturgeon man, whose blind and deaf dog was shot by a police officer, alleges the City of Sturgeon failed to properly train its officers, neglected to investigate the shooting and paid the officer $16,000 in back pay following his suspension.
Body camera footage ABC 17 News obtained shows now-former Officer Myron Woodson shooting and killing a 13-pound blind and deaf shih-Tzu named Teddy in a field on May 18, 2024. The dog belonged to Nicholas Hunter. A total of three minutes and six seconds occurs in the video from when Woodson first gets close to the animal and the first shot being fired, after several failed attempts to capture the dog using gloves and a catch-pole.
Hunter is now seeking a summary judgment. If the motion is granted and the court finds liability in Hunter’s favor, the case will proceed to trial for a jury to determine the amount of damages.
The City of Sturgeon also filed a motion asking the court to grant summary judgment, saying the facts cannot support liability under the federal “Monell” standard for municipal wrongdoing.
Initially, the City of Sturgeon posted on social media that Woodson felt that the only option was to kill the animal, thinking it was affected by rabies. However, the post states that it was later learned that the dog’s behavior was a result of being blind.
Court filings from Hunter’s attorneys state the City of Sturgeon provided officers with a catch pole to secure animals and had a contract with Boone County to handle limited animal control duties, including shelter and officer assistance.
However, the lawsuit argues Sturgeon failed to properly train Woodson on using the catch pole and never informed him about the Boone County agreement. The documents also allege that after shooting Teddy, Woodson put the dog in a container and left him in the woods outside a tire shop.
The lawsuit claims the city neglected to discipline Woodson despite “repeated and severe misconduct.”
Hunter’s attorneys argue that Woodson had received two citizen complaints prior to the shooting. One from October 2023 alleged Woodson had pulled over a 17-year-old boy and his friend and “behaved aggressively, used profanity, and ordered the teens out of the car before searching it.” During the search, Woodson reached into the car and allegedly yanked the boy’s cellphone out of his hands. However, Woodson only received verbal coaching for seizing the phone, and no discipline was recorded in his file.
Sturgeon did not have a police chief in 2023. Instead, Sgt. Thomas Crawford reported directly to the mayor, and all other officers under him reported to him.
In a deposition of Crawford, he admitted to having a conversation with Woodson about the incident, saying:
“We had a complaint where he reached in and took a kid’s cell phone out of their hand because they were playing music too loud at the park. So I went through and said, ‘You can’t do that. And that’s a clear violation that you’re taking somebody’s stuff away from them in a public space.'”
Crawford also said during the deposition that Woodson had been disciplined for the lack of details included in his traffic reports.
Hunter’s attorneys also argue that the City of Sturgeon reportedly promised a formal investigation, which never took place, and later paid Woodson a $16,000 settlement following his suspension.
The day that Teddy was shot, Tiffany Ware found the dog in her yard and called Boone County Joint Communications, asking if they could retrieve him. Court documents say Ware informed dispatchers the dog may be blind, but stressed that the animal was not dangerous or aggressive.
Following the shooting, Ware contacted now-former Sturgeon Mayor Kevin Abrahamson and later filed a citizen complaint to the city. Hunter also submitted a written complaint.
However, Hunter’s attorneys allege that Abramson repeatedly told Crawford and Woodon that he supported them fully and he would back them publicly. But following the release of bodycam footage, Abrahamson resigned from office on May 24, 2024.
Alderman Seth Truesdall assumed the position of mayor pro temp on May 25, 2024, and sent a social media post saying that the Board of Aldermen did not agree with Abramson’s initial statements on social media and that he was not given any notice before they were released. Later that day, Truesdale reached out to the Boone County Sheriff’s office to discuss an investigation into the incident.
On May 28, 2024, a town hall was held where more than 20 Sturgeon residents showed up to complain about some of Woodson’s past conduct. This included the complaint of him reaching into a car and grabbing a teenager’s phone. Following the meeting, Sturgeon’s Board of Aldermen and Truesdall put together a list of issues to investigate, but did not include Woodson shooting Teddy.
Crawford said during his deposition that the city told him they “couldn’t touch that dog shooting because it was already such a big media outlook that they didn’t want to include that into their complaint.”
Woodson was suspended during the investigation, but Crawford added during his deposition that Woodson was never told he was being suspended and found out on social media. Crawford also said he was not included in the investigation because it would have looked like a conflict of interest.
However, Hunter’s attorneys say that the city of Sturgeon asked a single law firm to conduct an outside investigation, which was declined. Once that request was declined, an investigation was never conducted.
While on leave, Woodson showed up twice to City Hall, demanding his paycheck early, despite the fact he was prohibited on city property. Woodson also responded to a standoff in Stureon as a Hallsville police officer. Court records show he later resigned from the Hallsville Police Department due to a “personal matter.”
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The City of Sturgeon is asking a federal judge to throw out claims that it failed to train or supervise Woodson before he fatally shot the dog
In court filings, the city argued there is no evidence it was “deliberately indifferent” to the need for animal control training. An affidavit from Woodson showed he was a state-licensed officer, received general animal-related instruction at the police academy, and had prior experience with an animal rescue group.
During a deposition of Woodson, he had formal animal training with Columbia Second Chance, 20 years before the shooting. Woodson argued he shot the dog because he believed it was the humane thing to do, citing that the dog was bumping into things and that its neck was crooked.
“I believed the dog was seriously injured and suffering,” Woodson said in the affidavit.
Woodson claimed in court documents he did not know the dog had an owner because it had no collar.
“I followed and complied with the City of Sturgeon Police Department policies related to deadly force which states that: ‘Officers may use deadly force to destroy an animal that represents a threat to public safety or as a humanitarian measure where the animal is seriously injured, when the officer reasonably beleives that deadly force can be used without harm to the officer or others,’” Woodson said in the affidavit.
The motion for dismissal argues that Woodson is entitled to qualified immunity because his actions did not violate clearly established law.
Truesdale also said in an affidavit that at no time while he was on the Board of Aldermen did he believe they had a need for additional training on how to handle dogs. He argued Sturgeon had no history of officers using excessive force against dogs, no reason to believe Woodson would need special training for stray-dog calls, and no policy encouraging the use of deadly force.
The defense argues that this was an isolated event, not the result of a municipal custom or practice, and points to the Boone County contract as evidence that they took animal control seriously.
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