Damages Cut in Maryland Dog Shooting Case

A court has slightly reduced the $620,000 awarded in April to a Taneytown, Md., family whose dog was shot by a Frederick County sheriff’s deputy.

The Frederick News-Post reported Wednesday that a Montgomery County judge trimmed $12,500 in veterinary costs from the award. The jury had awarded $20,000 for those costs but Maryland law caps damages for veterinary bills at $7,500.

The judge left unchanged the $600,000 that Roger and Sandi Jenkins won for pain and suffering.

Deputy Timothy Brooks was found to have violated the couple’s rights when he shot their chocolate Labrador retriever Brandi in January 2010. The jury also found that Brooks and Deputy Nathan Rector had entered their home without permission.

The officers had gone to the Jenkins’ home with a civil warrant for a juvenile.